in-crop-weather State Indiana Crop Weather Week Ending Date May 20, 2001 Issue IN-CW2001 Agricultural Summary Much needed rain was welcomed by farmers in most areas of the state. Corn planting is virtually complete, according to the Indiana Agricultural Statistics Service. Corn planting finished 6 days ahead of the previous record pace established in 1988. Soybean planting is 2 weeks ahead of the record pace set in 1988. The rain helped soybean emergence and spurred corn growth. Field Crops Report Fieldwork made excellent progress in most areas of the state. There were 4.3 days suitable for fieldwork. Virtually all of the corn acreage is planted compared with 94 percent last year and 72 percent for the 5-year average. Ninety-five percent of the intended corn acreage has emerged compared with 74 percent last year. Ninety-four percent of the soybean acreage is planted compared with 73 percent a year ago and 49 percent for the average. By area, 96 percent of the soybean acreage is planted in the north, 97 percent in the central regions and 83 percent in the south. Seventy percent of the intended soybean acreage has emerged compared with 46 percent last year. Other activities during the week included tilling soils, applying anhydrous ammonia, cleaning and repairing equipment, spraying, irrigating, chopping forage, mowing roads and hauling manure. Eighty-eight percent of the winter wheat is headed compared with 84 percent last year and 58 percent for the average. Winter wheat condition is rated 64 percent good to excellent compared with 79 percent a year ago at this time. Livestock, Pasture and Range Report Pasture condition is rated 6 percent excellent, 43 percent good, 28 percent fair, 14 percent poor and 9 percent very poor. Livestock are in mostly good condition. Transplanting of tobacco is 26 percent complete compared with 11 percent for the average. First cutting of hay and forage crops is underway in some areas of the state. Crop Progress Table --------------------------------------------------- : This : Last: Last : 5-Year Crop : Week : Week: Year : Avg --------------------------------------------------- Percent Corn Planted 100 99 94 72 Corn Emerged 95 75 74 NA Soybeans Planted 94 80 73 49 Soybeans Emerged 70 NA 46 NA Winter Wheat Headed 88 55 84 58 Tobacco Plants Set 26 3 11 11 Crop Condition Table -------------------------------------------------------- : Very : : : : Excel- Crop : Poor : Poor : Fair : Good : lent -------------------------------------------------------- Percent Corn 1 4 23 59 13 Pasture 9 14 28 43 6 Winter Wheat 2001 3 10 23 55 9 Winter Wheat 2000 0 3 18 54 25 Soil Moisture & Days Suitable For Fieldwork Table --------------------------------------------------- : This : Last : Last : Week : Week : Year --------------------------------------------------- Percent Topsoil Very Short 13 18 1 Short 18 38 6 Adequate 58 43 74 Surplus 11 1 19 Subsoil Very Short 16 17 9 Short 31 39 37 Adequate 49 43 50 Surplus 4 1 4 Days Suitable 4.3 5.7 3.8 Contact information --Ralph W. Gann, State Statistician --Bud Bever, Agricultural Statistician E-Mail Address: nass-in@nass.usda.gov http://www.nass.usda.gov/in/index.htm Other Agricultural Comments and News Armyworms Marching Big Time, This is NO Parade - Severe damage occurring in many southwestern Indiana wheat and pasture field - Problem could be brewing further north, especially northeastern counties - Labeled insecticides and harvest restrictions for various crops are given Thanks to many Purdue extension educators (Jerry Nelson, Bob Yoder, Jim Peters, and Phil Schmidt) and Grower's Co-op (Chad Brown and Betsy Smith) for alerting us to the armyworm situation in southwestern Indiana. Upon visiting this area, the damage seen in many fields will leave a lasting impression. Wheat, grass pastures, soybean fields, and lawns were observed with devastating damage. It certainly gives one an appreciation for the biotic potential of this insect. At present (Tuesday, May 16) damage has not been reported north of Greene County. It may be just a matter of time, as the armyworm development moves further into the state. Please let us know what you are seeing. We have been asked by several producers on why the "biblical" proportion of armyworm numbers. Simply, there is not a good answer. The facts are that three weeks ago our black light traps picked up impressive numbers of adults (a high of 670 moths in Whitley County). This certainly set the stage for tremendous egg laying. The continual dry conditions, especially apparent in southern Indiana, hasn't allowed for fungal pathogens to multiply and spread throughout the armyworm population. As well, the damage is aggravated with the stressed crops growing slowly. Parasitic flies have had very little impact, during our inspections only one parasitized larva was observed (white eggs on the worm's body). High risk crops are those associated with tall growing grasses, e.g., wheat, rye, fescue, etc. Egg laden female moths were attracted to these sites for laying. The newly hatched larvae are very small and damage is negligible. Then, what seems like overnight, the armyworm are 1/2 to 1 inch long and devouring crops; especially where grasses are burned down with herbicides leaving only the emerging crop. When green leaf material gets scarce they move, often in mass, to the adjoining fields. With numbers like those observed in southwestern Indiana, economic thresholds are quickly reached if not exceeded (thresholds for corn and wheat are in the last two issues of the Pest & Crop). The Armyworm Insecticide Table can be viewed at: http://www. entm.purdue.edu/entomology/ext/targets/p&c/P&C2001/P&C9_2001. pdf. John Obermeyer, Rich Edwards, and Larry Bledsoe, Dept of Entomology, Purdue University. Weather Information Table Week Ending Sunday May 20, 2001 -------------------------------------------------- | Past Week Weather Summary Data |--------------------------------- Station | Air | | Avg | Temperature | Precip. |4 in. |---------------|-----------|Soil |Hi |Lo |Avg|DFN|Total |Days|Temp -------------------------------------------------- Northwest (1) | Valparaiso_Ag |87 45 67 +8 1.38 5 Wanatah |90 40 67 +8 2.20 4 69 Wheatfield |91 41 67 +8 1.20 4 Winamac |90 33 68 +7 2.91 5 70 North Central(2)| Logansport |88 41 66 +6 1.89 5 Plymouth |87 34 65 +4 0.68 4 South_Bend |87 42 67 +8 1.33 3 Young_America |87 45 69 +8 1.82 5 Northeast (3) | Bluffton |86 42 65 +4 2.63 5 64 Fort_Wayne |86 41 66 +6 0.86 5 West Central (4)| Crawfordsville |90 29 68 +6 0.76 3 66 Perrysville |92 46 71 +10 0.93 4 67 Terre_Haute_Ag |99 38 71 +8 4.13 3 71 W_Lafayette_6NW |94 40 70 +10 1.47 4 67 Central (5) | Castleton |85 37 67 +5 1.54 5 Greenfield |87 44 67 +5 1.64 4 Greensburg |87 51 69 +7 2.51 3 Indianapolis_AP |88 48 68 +6 1.10 2 Indianapolis_SE |88 43 67 +5 1.41 2 Tipton_Ag |89 42 66 +7 2.50 4 63 East Central (6)| Farmland |86 43 65 +6 2.64 5 63 New_Castle |83 43 64 +4 2.60 5 Southwest (7) | Dubois_Ag |89 44 72 +9 0.80 3 76 Evansville |91 56 74 +9 1.47 2 Freelandville |91 46 71 +9 1.35 4 Shoals |90 37 69 +7 1.81 3 Vincennes_5NE |93 45 73 +10 0.90 2 73 South Central(8)| Bloomington |89 37 70 +7 1.54 4 Tell_City |89 45 72 +8 0.23 1 Southeast (9) | Scottsburg |87 44 69 +6 1.39 4 -------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------- | Accumulation | April 1, 2001 thru Station | May 20, 2001 |--------------------------------- |Precipitation| GDD Base 50oF |-------------|------------------- | Total | DFN |Days|Total| DFN -------------------------------------------------- Northwest (1) | Valparaiso_Ag | 5.13 -1.29 24 518 +255 Wanatah | 5.35 -0.79 26 483 +259 Wheatfield | 5.09 -0.91 26 542 +299 Winamac | 6.59 +0.68 25 552 +270 North Central(2)| Logansport | 6.24 +0.37 24 523 +247 Plymouth | 4.69 -1.61 25 490 +192 South_Bend | 6.21 +0.35 23 527 +281 Young_America | 5.04 -0.83 20 589 +313 Northeast (3) | Bluffton | 6.87 +0.92 25 533 +245 Fort_Wayne | 4.72 -0.86 25 526 +266 West Central (4)| Crawfordsville | 3.44 -3.28 19 557 +215 Perrysville | 3.73 -2.74 20 644 +328 Terre_Haute_Ag | 8.51 +1.65 20 706 +342 W_Lafayette_6NW | 4.53 -1.75 19 607 +325 Central (5) | Castleton | 5.69 -1.00 20 619 +285 Greenfield | 4.72 -2.16 19 615 +301 Greensburg | 6.66 -0.57 16 660 +333 Indianapolis_AP | 4.50 -1.80 15 679 +326 Indianapolis_SE | 4.03 -2.66 14 606 +272 Tipton_Ag | 6.03 -0.37 17 527 +277 East Central (6)| Farmland | 7.02 +1.05 20 523 +282 New_Castle | 7.53 +0.58 22 477 +229 Southwest (7) | Dubois_Ag | 3.48 -3.82 12 724 +330 Evansville | 3.19 -3.97 13 798 +311 Freelandville | 3.36 -3.81 16 722 +334 Shoals | 3.95 -3.60 13 676 +300 Vincennes_5NE | 2.29 -4.88 12 755 +367 South Central(8)| Bloomington | 3.43 -3.62 16 689 +307 Tell_City | 2.33 -5.65 8 766 +318 Southeast (9) | Scottsburg | 4.91 -2.22 15 706 +314 ------------------------------------------------------------- DFN = Departure From Normal (Using 1961-90 Normals Period). GDD = Growing Degree Days. Precipitation (rain or melted snow/ice) in inches. Precipitation Days = Days with precipitation of 0.01 inch or more. Air Temperatures in Degrees Fahrenheit. Copyright 2001: AWIS, Inc. All Rights Reserved. The above weather information is provided by AWIS, Inc. For detailed ag weather forecasts and data visit the AWIS home page at www.awis.com or call toll free at 1-888-798-9955.