in-crop-weather State Indiana Crop Weather Week Ending Date April 26, 2009 IN-CW042709 AGRICULTURAL SUMMARY Planting season has finally begun, according to the Indiana Field Office of USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service. Cool, wet conditions hindered field work early in the week. However, a strong breeze and temperatures over 80 degrees late in the week allowed soils to dry enough to support equipment in many areas. Many farmers were able to do some tillage work, spread dry fertilizer and knife-in anhydrous ammonia. Strong winds made it difficult to spray herbicides. Fruit crops are reported to be in good condition at this time. FIELD CROPS REPORT There were 2.0 days suitable for field work during the week. Two percent of the intended corn acreage has been planted compared with 9 percent last year and 25 percent for the 5-year average. Only a few scattered fields of soybeans have been reported to be planted at this time. Forty-five percent of the winter wheat acreage is jointed compared with 49 percent last year and 61 percent for the 5-year average. Winter wheat condition is rated 78 percent good to excellent compared with 67 percent last year at this time. Very little winter wheat acreage will have to be destroyed this spring due to poor stands. Major activities during the week included: hauling grain to market, tilling soils, spreading fertilizer, knifing-in anhydrous ammonia, planting corn, hauling manure, and taking care of livestock. LIVESTOCK, PASTURE AND RANGE REPORT Livestock are in mostly good condition. Calving continues on many livestock operations with a low death rate being reported. Hay supplies are reported to be mostly adequate at this time. Feeding of hay has slowed due to improving pasture conditions. Crop Progress Table ------------------------------------------------------- : This : Last : Last : 5-Year Crop : Week : Week : Year : Avg ------------------------------------------------------- Percent Corn Planted 2 NA 9 25 Winter Wheat Jointed 45 25 49 61 Crop Condition Table ----------------------------------------------------------- : Very : : : : Excel- Crop : Poor : Poor : Fair : Good : lent ----------------------------------------------------------- Percent Pasture 4 5 26 54 11 Winter Wheat 1 2 19 58 20 Soil Moisture & Days Suitable for Fieldwork Table ---------------------------------------- : This : Last : Last : : Week : Week : Year : ---------------------------------------- Percent Topsoil Very Short 0 0 0 Short 1 0 1 Adequate 56 37 76 Surplus 43 63 23 Subsoil Very Short 1 0 0 Short 2 2 1 Adequate 67 57 66 Surplus 30 41 33 Days Suitable 2.0 1.0 4.8 Contact Information --Greg Preston, Director --Andy Higgins, Agricultural Statistician E-Mail Address: nass-in@nass.usda.gov http://www.nass.usda.gov/Statistics_by_State/Indiana ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Other Agricultural Comments And News LOW TEMPERATURES AND CORN EMERGENCE What impact will recent weather conditions have on corn that's already been planted? Some fields were planted several weeks ago before soils were saturated by persistent rains. In past years, we have observed that early planted corn that was in the process of germinating or as far along as the V1 stage (one leaf collar visible) survived freezing temperatures in late April with little impact on crop performance or plant stand. Agronomists generally downplay the impact of low temperature injury in corn because the growing point is at or below the soil surface until V6 (six leaf collars visible), and thereby relatively safe from freezing air temperatures. However when dry corn seed absorbs cold water as a result of a cold rain or melting snow, "imbibitional chilling injury" may result. Cold water can cause similar injury to seedling structures as they emerge during germination. Such physiological injury was widely observed in 2005 when early planted corn in various stages of germination and emergence was subjected to a period freezing rain and snow followed by temperatures at or below 50 degree F for about 10 days. What we've experienced thus far in 2007 is mild in comparison to 2005. To assess the impact of these freezing temperatures on emerged corn, check plants about 5 days after the freezing injury occurred (and preferably when growing conditions conducive for regrowth have occurred). New leaf tissue should be emerging from the whorl. You can also observe the condition of the growing point (usually located ½ in to 3/4 in below the soil surface) by splitting seedlings lengthwise. If the growing point appears white to light yellow and firm several days after the frost, prognosis for recovery is good. Of greater concern with regard to the viability of germinating and emerging corn is how long soils will remain saturated. Cool temperatures and wet weather provide the right conditions for the development of seedling blight diseases. Cold temperature injury can play a significant role in predisposing plants to root infection and blight. Under normal conditions plants can continue to grow and produce new roots, but when other injuries occur, new roots cannot develop rapidly and Pythium and other soil fungi can kill stressed plants. Seed treatment fungicides generally remain effective from 10 to 14 days but under saturated conditions the duration of protection may be shorter. For more detailed information on corn germination and emergence, check out the series of excellent articles (noted below) which Dr. Bob Nielsen, my counterpart at Purdue University has written. These articles include great photos that will assist your understanding of these growth and development processes. Nielsen, R.L. 2008. Germination Events in Corn. Corny News Network, Purdue Univ. [On-Line]. Available at http://www.kingcorn.org/news/timeless/ Germination Events.html. Nielsen, R.L. 2008. The Emergence Process in Corn. Corny News Network, Purdue Univ. [On-Line]. Available at http://www.kingcorn.org/news/ timeless/Emergence.html. Nielsen, R.L. 2008. Heat Unit Concepts Related to Corn Development. Corny News Network, Purdue Univ. [On-Line]. Available at http://www. kingcorn.org/news/timeless/HeatUnits.html Dr. Peter C. Thomison, Extension Specialist, OSU Horticulture and Crop Sciences, 202 Kottman Hall, 2021 Coffey Road, Columbus, OH 43210, (614)-292-2373. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ HEAT UNITS REQUIRED FOR CORN EMERGENCE Cool wet conditions have thus far limited corn planting in April. A few fields were planted as early as late March and early April. Now there are questions as to when this corn will emerge. According to USDA-NASS http://www.nass. usda.gov/oh/ as of April 12, we were behind in heat unit (growing degrees day, GDD) accumulation compared to the long term norm - with GDD accumulation since April 1 averaging about 42 across the state. Corn requires about 100 GDDs to emerge but emergence requirements can vary from 90 to150 GDDs. To determine daily GDD accumulation, calculate the average daily temperature (high + low)/2 and subtract the base temperature which is 50 degrees F for corn. If the daily low temperature is above 50 degrees, and the high is 86 or less, then this calculation is performed using actual temperatures, but if the low temperature is less than 50 degrees, use 50 degrees as the low in the formula. Similarly, if the high is above 86 degrees, use 86 degrees in the formula. If it takes a corn hybrid 100 GDDs to emerge, and daily high and low temperatures average 70 and 50 degrees following planting, 10 GDDs accumulate per day, and corn should emerge in about 10 days (100 GDDs to emerge/10 GDDs per day = 10 days). However, if daily high and low temperatures are cooler, averaging 60 and 45 degrees after planting, 5 GDDs accumulate per day, and it may take nearly 3 weeks (100 GDDs to emerge/5 GDDs per day = 20 days) for corn to emerge. In 2005, corn planted in mid- April took as long as 3 to 4 weeks to emerge in many fields. Seedling emergence is dependent on soil temperature and air temperature. Also, keep in mind that estimates of emergence based on GDDs are approximate and can be influenced by various factors including residue cover, tillage, and soil organic matter (soil "color") and moisture content. Corn emergence can be slowed by inadequate soil moisture. Dry soil conditions can cause uneven emergence in some fields that may impact yield if emergence delays exceed 1.5 to 2 weeks. We observed this problem in some corn fields in 2007 when weather turned dry after a wet April. Crops vary widely with regard to the minimum moisture content required for emergence. For corn, the minimum moisture content at which the radicle emerges is 30% of the seed dry weight. In contrast, for soybean, the reported minimum moisture content required for germination is 50%. However since a soybean seed generally weighs only 2/3 or less the weight of a corn seed, a soybean seed requires less water to germinate. Dr. Peter C. Thomison, Extension Specialist, OSU Horticulture and Crop Sciences, 202 Kottman Hall, 2021 Coffey Road, Columbus, OH 43210, (614)-292-2373. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ The INDIANA CROP & WEATHER REPORT (USPS 675-770), (ISSN 0442-817X) is issued weekly April through November by the USDA, NASS, Indiana Field Office, 1435 Win Hentschel Blvd, Suite 110, West Lafayette IN 47906-4145. For information on subscribing, send request to above address. POSTMASTER: Send address change to the USDA, NASS, Indiana Field Office, 1435 Win Hentschel Blvd, Suite 110, West Lafayette IN 47906-4145. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Weather Information Table Week ending Sunday April 26, 2009 ----------------------------------------------------- | Past Week Weather Summary Data |--------------------------------- Station | Air | | Avg | Temperature | Precip. |4 in. |---------------|------------|Soil |Hi |Lo |Avg|DFN| Total|Days |Temp ----------------------------------------------------- Northwest (1) Chalmers_5W 83 34 55 +2 0.77 3 Francesville 83 31 53 +0 0.61 4 Valparaiso_AP_I 84 30 53 +2 0.64 4 Wanatah 83 27 51 +1 0.64 4 52 Winamac 83 32 53 +1 0.66 4 48 North Central(2) Plymouth 84 32 53 +0 1.02 5 South_Bend 85 30 54 +3 0.82 5 Young_America 83 31 54 +3 0.20 2 Northeast (3) Fort_Wayne 84 33 56 +5 1.06 3 Kendallville 86 36 54 +3 0.61 3 West Central(4) Greencastle 84 36 57 +2 0.86 3 Perrysville 84 34 57 +4 0.60 3 51 Spencer_Ag 83 34 57 +4 0.45 3 Terre_Haute_AFB 84 38 60 +5 1.78 2 W_Lafayette_6NW 85 34 57 +5 0.88 4 48 Central (5) Eagle_Creek_AP 83 36 59 +4 0.64 3 Greenfield 84 34 55 +2 0.90 3 Indianapolis_AP 85 37 59 +5 0.41 3 Indianapolis_SE 84 34 56 +2 0.66 3 Tipton_Ag 84 32 55 +4 0.69 4 58 East Central(6) Farmland 85 30 55 +5 0.84 3 53 New_Castle 83 32 54 +3 0.47 3 Southwest (7) Evansville 86 35 62 +4 1.03 1 Freelandville 83 39 58 +3 0.86 3 Shoals_8S 85 31 57 +2 0.91 3 Stendal 86 40 62 +5 1.51 2 Vincennes_5NE 86 38 60 +4 0.66 3 57 South Central(8) Leavenworth 86 38 59 +3 1.16 3 Oolitic 83 35 57 +3 0.62 3 55 Tell_City 85 40 60 +3 1.55 1 Southeast (9) Brookville 87 35 57 +4 0.39 3 Greensburg 86 37 58 +4 0.45 3 Seymour 86 35 56 +2 0.46 3 ----------------------------------------------------- Weather Information Table (Continued) Week ending Sunday April 26, 2009 ------------------------------------------------- | Accumulation |-------------------------------- | April 1, 2009 thru Station | April 26, 2009 |-------------------------------- | Precipitation |GDD Base 50oF |-------------------------------- | | | | | |Total | DFN |Days|Total| DFN ------------------------------------------------- Northwest (1) | Chalmers_5W |4.18 +1.07 11 59 -30 Francesville |3.76 +0.56 12 54 -11 Valparaiso_AP_I |3.46 +0.02 9 69 +8 Wanatah |3.50 +0.19 11 40 -6 Winamac |3.72 +0.52 12 56 -9 North Central(2)| Plymouth |3.88 +0.53 13 58 -14 South_Bend |3.00 -0.35 11 75 +22 Young_America |3.35 +0.36 10 78 +15 Northeast (3) | Fort_Wayne |5.17 +2.23 10 83 +25 Kendallville |2.88 +0.10 12 73 +17 West Central(4) | Greencastle |5.23 +2.06 12 82 -21 Perrysville |4.73 +1.38 10 88 +6 Spencer_Ag |5.45 +2.01 13 81 -7 Terre_Haute_AFB |4.66 +1.33 9 123 +19 W_Lafayette_6NW |5.04 +1.85 13 78 +12 Central (5) | Eagle_Creek_AP |4.75 +1.57 13 104 +9 Greenfield |5.06 +1.60 12 67 -8 Indianapolis_AP |4.83 +1.65 11 119 +24 Indianapolis_SE |5.59 +2.40 12 79 -7 Tipton_Ag |5.53 +2.16 12 63 +12 East Central(6) | Farmland |4.33 +1.24 12 74 +27 New_Castle |3.78 +0.27 10 64 +13 Southwest (7) | Evansville |4.28 +0.83 10 162 -5 Freelandville |6.10 +2.81 12 105 -13 Shoals_8S |5.80 +2.30 12 89 -28 Stendal |6.14 +2.32 11 160 +21 Vincennes_5NE |5.54 +2.25 10 106 -12 South Central(8)| Leavenworth |4.44 +0.46 13 126 +5 Oolitic |4.85 +1.41 13 90 -9 Tell_City |4.45 +0.28 8 142 -7 Southeast (9) | Brookville |3.59 +0.32 12 88 +16 Greensburg |3.88 +0.40 12 97 +9 Seymour |3.87 +0.51 11 80 -21 ------------------------------------------------------------------ Copyright 2009: Agricultural Weather Information Service, Inc. All rights reserved. DFN = Departure From Normal GDD = Growing Degree Days. Precipitation (Rainfall or melted snow/ice) in inches. Precipitation Days = Days with precip of .01 inch or more. Air Temperatures in Degrees Fahrenheit. For more weather inrformation, visit www.awis.com or call 1-888-798-9955.