Minnesota experiencing 100% drought stress, corn and soybean yields vary widely

Drought stress continues to impact 100% of Minnesota’s acres after spotty rains over the summer have failed to alleviate drought conditions.

Although the entirety of the state of Minnesota is experiencing drought stress, it’s the “tale of two crops” for the state’s corn, says Angie Peltier, regional educator for the University of Minnesota Extension. 

“Farmers are finding a lot of variability in yield according to how much, and when, rain fell on individual fields,” Peltier says.

Peltier adds drought conditions during pollination and fertilization resulted in some fields developing smutty ears. “Some ears that did form had every intention of filling out kernels at the ear tip,” Peltier says, “but, instead, only very small, very shallow kernels formed before the crop began to mature.”

When it comes to yields, Peltier says in northwestern Minnesota, that corn fields that didn’t receive much precipitation still managing to yield 140 to 150 bushels per acre (bpa). Although Peltier notes that some farmers have shared with her that they’ve yielded as little as 50 bpa. Others have yielded up to 200 bpa.  

While 90% of Minnesota is mature, according to the USDA Crop Progress report for the week ending Oct. 1, Peltier notes that the state’s corn crop is drier than farmers would like. As a result, Peltier says the corn crop is fragile and prone to injury, which could make harvest a challenge. 

Peltier recently visited several corn fields, and says that many of the fields she visited, “won’t have a standing crop for long if harvest is significantly delayed due to the rain forecast this week.” 

Minnesota’s soybean crop also experienced an excessive amount of dryness leading into harvest, Peltier says. For soybeans that have been harvested, Peltier says she’s heard farmers report yields of 30 to 50 bpa, “with many harvested at 10% moisture.” 

The recent drought monitor map shows that 8% of Minnesota is in D3 extreme drought. Thirty-six percent of the state is in D2 severe drought, while just over 38% is in D1 moderate drought. The state’s remaining acres, at 18%, are abnormally dry.

Bob Worth, president of the Minnesota Soybean Growers Association and a corn and soybean farmer in Lake Benton, Minnesota, says that his soybean yields are 40% to 45% less than average, coming in at 25 to 35 bpa. 

“The soybean crop didn’t have enough moisture to pull us through,” Worth says. “A lack of rain aborted all the pods and really made a mess out of them.”

Just a few miles down the road from his farm, though, Worth says his neighbors are experiencing average yields because their crops received just enough rain.

Worth, who’s been farming for 53 years, says that last year he had to collect federal crop insurance on every acre of corn and soybeans, and this year’s crop is even worse than last year. While things are rough on his operation, Worth says, because he’s been farming so long he’s able to absorb the costs of a third bad year in a row. He says he’s worried about beginning farmers who don’t have the net worth or capital to withstand multiple years of poor crop yields.

Worth admits that, in his early years of farming, he went through a major depression as a result of tough years on the farm. As a result, he wants young farmers to know that they aren’t alone, and urges them to seek help. “You’re not a failure,” Worth says. “You’ll get through it, and somehow Mother Nature will reward you with a good year.”