Crop yields are expected to be down for some Kansas farmers as persistent drought conditions persist across the state and precipitation remains below average.
Luke Bellar, a corn, soybean, and wheat farmer in Labette County, Kansas, says that, while his corn crop is up to 8 feet tall, courtesy of rain his farm received in May, limited precipitation throughout June and July is setting him up for yields of 80 to 100 bushels/acre or less. “If we miss rain, we’re looking at a 50 to 60 bushel corn crop,” Bellar says.
The season started with dry planting conditions, Bellar says. “We had zero subsoil moisture when we started planting,” he notes. As a result, Bellar says when the rains did come, the corn sucked up the moisture quickly.
The July 9 Crop Progress report shows topsoil moisture supplies have improved slightly from the week prior. Recent Kansas topsoil moisture supplies rated 8% very short, 31% short, 61% adequate, and 10% surplus. In the July 2 report, topsoil moisture supplies rated just 3% surplus and 55% adequate. Subsoil moisture supplies, however, remain relatively steady from July 2 to July 9, rating 13% very short, 32% short, 53% adequate, and 2% surplus.
This is the second consecutive year of drought that has challenged Bellar’s crops. In 2022, Bellar says his corn only yielded 27 bushels per acre. “Last year was the second worst corn crop in the farm’s history,” Bellar says, “We were cutting and picking corn at 8 mph, and it took forever to fill up the combine.”
While Bellar’s corn and soybeans are struggling, he says his wheat has done well, especially with the precipitation that fell on his operation this past May. “What’s saving us on the farm crop-wise is the wheat,” Bellar says.
Even though Bellar expects yields to be below average because of the drought, he says that things are better off on his operation this year compared to last year. However, he says that he hopes hurricanes will form in the Gulf of Mexico, “because that moisture seems to come up” to Kansas, which would benefit his crops.
The latest drought monitor map for Kansas shows that just less than 4% of the state is drought free. Almost 15% is abnormally dry, 27% is in D1 moderate drought, 22% is in D2 severe drought, 28% is in D3 extreme drought, and the remaining 6% is in D4 exceptional drought.
Teresa Brandenburg, the district 7 representative and chairman of the Kansas Soybean Association, says that this year has been more challenging than usual on her farm as a result of the drought. However, Brandenburg says that she tries hard to be proactive when it comes to managing water for her soybeans, wheat, and grain sorghum by implementing reduced till and no till wherever possible.
Source: agriculture.com
Photo Credit: gettyimages-banksphotos
Categories: Kansas, Harvesting, Weather