Storms could put temporary halt to Ohio's corn planting surge

Ohio’s 2024 corn planting season didn’t begin until the week ending April 28, but the state is racing far ahead of its five-year average. 

Jumping from 6% planted to 26% in the latest U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Crop Progress report published the week ending May 5, Ohio is now 14 percentage points above the 12% five-year average. Eight percent of the corn crop has emerged, ahead of the five-year average of 2%. 

One of the reasons for strong numbers is the healthy amount of precipitation the state received in the month of April. According to data gathered by the Iowa Environmental Mesonet, over 85% of Ohio got more than 100% of the average precipitation received from April 1 through May 6. In some areas, such as Mercer and Darke counties in western Ohio, precipitation and rainfall was more than 200% of the monthly average.

Only 3% of the state’s topsoil was labeled as in short condition, while 61% was in adequate condition and 36% of topsoil in Ohio was labeled surplus. 

Too much precipitation?

Despite the positive effect precipitation had on the state’s topsoil, there were still downsides. Rain delays were still present, according to the state Crop Progress recap released by the Ohio Department of Agriculture. 

Only 3.5 days out of the week were suitable for field work and “light but consistent rain showers have kept the soil wet enough to limit fieldwork in some locations,” said Ben Torrance of the USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service Ohio field office. Slight delays in some areas didn’t stop farmers from getting fertilizer work and burndown herbicide applications done in advance of getting crops in the ground. 

Rain, thunderstorms, and severe weather struck much of the state on Tuesday and the storms bled into Wednesday, potentially throwing multiple wrinkles into the state’s quickfire corn planting progress. Areas throughout the state were under flood warnings and watches, and power outages due to storms in the Cincinnati area caused school delays.

The forecast for the rest of the week in Ohio also called for more rainfall and the chance of severe weather. With river levels already high in the area due to the rain over the last month, the potential for flooding exists.

Forecast 30-60 days ahead

Temperatures in Ohio are expected to lean above normal in May through July, according to the National Weather Service’s predictions released April 8. The northeastern part of the state, which includes the Cleveland area, is categorized as “likely above” due to a higher chance of above-average temperatures. 

Central and southern Ohio are projected to be leaning above average seasonal precipitation in May, June, and July. The northern part of the state has equal chances of normal, above average, or below average precipitation.