in-crop-weather State Indiana Crop Weather Week Ending Date November 3, 2002 Issue IN-CW4402 Agricultural Summary Rain slowed corn and soybean harvest in most areas of the state early in the week, but harvest continued to make good progress, according to the Indiana Agricultural Statistics Service. Corn harvest is 1 day behind average, but 6 days ahead of last year. Soybean harvest is 1 day behind average, but 7 days ahead of last year. Soybean harvest is nearing completion on many farms. Fall tillage continued to make excellent progress during the week. Soil moisture has improved aided by the recent precipitation. Many farmers were plowing fields, discing stalks and chiseling. Seeding winter wheat, selling grain, spreading fertilizer and lime were other major activities taking place last week. Field Crops Report There were 4.4 days suitable for fieldwork. Seventy-eight percent of the corn acreage is harvested compared with 63 percent last year and 79 percent for the 5-year average. By area, 77 percent of the corn acreage is harvested in the north, 75 percent in the central regions and 86 percent in the south. Moisture content of harvested corn is averaging 18 percent. Ninety-three percent of the soybean acreage is harvested compared with 83 percent last year and 94 percent for the average. By area, 96 percent of the soybean acreage is harvested in the north, 95 percent in the central regions and 82 percent in the south. Moisture content of harvested soybeans is averaging about 12.5 percent. Ninety-four percent of the winter wheat acreage is seeded compared with 85 percent last year and 93 percent for the average. By area, 96 percent of the winter wheat acreage is seeded in the north, 94 percent in the central regions and 93 percent in the south. Seventy-seven percent of the winter wheat acreage has emerged compared with 68 percent last year and 76 percent for the average. Livestock, Pasture and Range Report Pasture condition is rated 1 percent excellent, 23 percent good, 43 percent fair, 20 percent poor and 13 percent very poor. Pastures continued to improve in some areas. Livestock remain in mostly good condition. Hay supplies are in short supply in most regions. Hay prices are high. Fall calving continued. Crop Progress Table -------------------------------------------------------- : This : Last : Last : 5-Year Crop : Week : Week : Year : Avg -------------------------------------------------------- Percent Corn Harvested 78 66 63 79 Soybeans Harvested 93 89 83 94 Winter Wheat Planted 94 89 85 93 Winter Wheat Emerged 77 64 68 76 Crop Condition Table -------------------------------------------------------- : Very : : : : Excel- Crop : Poor : Poor : Fair : Good : lent -------------------------------------------------------- Percent Pasture 13 20 43 23 1 Winter Wheat 0 1 35 56 8 Soil Moisture & Days Suitable For Fieldwork Table ------------------------------------------------------- : This : Last : Last : Week : Week : Year ------------------------------------------------------- Percent Topsoil Very Short 6 6 0 Short 16 23 1 Adequate 64 65 57 Surplus 14 6 42 Subsoil Very Short 16 19 1 Short 32 35 5 Adequate 50 45 64 Surplus 2 1 30 Days Suitable 4.4 5.1 5.1 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 SOIL COMPACTION NOT ALWAYS GROUNDS FOR DEEP TILLAGE WEST LAFAYETTE, IN Crop fields are taking the 2002 season hard, but it might not require a deep tillage operation to loosen them up. The wild weather extremes that compelled many farmers to plant into wet soils in late spring and then baked the earth with excessive heat and drought this summer did more than damage potential crop yields. Those hasty field operations and subsequent rainy/dry periods also laid the groundwork for compacted soils. Farmers anxious to break up tough soil layers to prevent crop losses in 2003 should first determine the extent of the compaction problem, said Tony Vyn, Purdue University Cooperative Extension Service cropping systems specialist. Although it might be tempting to pull a deep ripping implement across their fields, farmers shouldn't underestimate the soil loosening power of nature. "We can't necessarily assume that planting operations when surface soils were too wet resulted in deep compaction," Vyn said. "It may very well be that the bulk of the compaction was actually quite close to the soil surface, and that the compaction can be alleviated by natural processes like soil wetting and drying, earthworms and crop rooting activity. Compaction can be alleviated even further by frost activity over the winter." Compaction occurs when heavy farm machinery presses down on soil as the equipment travels over a field. Compacted soils can make it difficult for crops to grow properly if plant roots are unable to penetrate dense soil layers except through weaker cracks or large pores. Generally, only well-defined, compacted soil layers deeper than 4 inches below the soil surface are candidates for loosening, or subsoiling, Vyn said. Careful evaluation of soils will help farmers identify deep compacted layers. Vyn suggests performing a soil evaluation when the ground is uniformly wet to a depth of two feet or more. A farmer should dig a 20 - to 24 - inch deep hole, exposing a vertical soil profile. Then, using constant pressure, try pushing a pocketknife blade from the surface down to the maximum depth of the blade. If the farmer has a harder time sliding the blade through a particular area a few inches wide, a compacted layer might be present. Such soil evaluations should be done at four or more random areas in fields of 50-plus acres, Vyn said. Farmers also should note crop rooting patterns. If a significant number of roots have grown sideways before finding a crack in the soil and growing down again, it may be a sign of compaction. When subsoiling is warranted, it should be done when soils are dry. "Typically, we suggest that loosening operations be done when soils are reasonably dry, because we tend to get more shattering of the soil between the shanks of a ripper or subsoiling tool," Vyn said. "If rains cause very damp soil conditions, then it's possible to create a greater problem using a subsoiling tool through smearing as the tool is pulled through the soil." In some cases, subsoiling makes a bad situation worse, Vyn said. "What tends to happen after a ripping operation is you have one or more passes with tractors and tillage implements, which can result in a re-formation of a dense soil layer at the depth of the next tillage operation, or at even greater depths if there are high axle loads with the tractor," he said, adding that excessive loosening can lead to harvest delays the following year under wet fall conditions. "We need to be conscious about limiting traffic on these fields after loosening. One way to do that is strip tillage. Another way is to use a combination tillage operation in the fall so that it's possible to use a stale-seedbed planting system the following spring." Vyn said farmers should be mindful of other issues when addressing compaction: * Subsoiling should be done no deeper than 1-2 inches below the compacted soil zone, and never based on available tractor horsepower or the maximum depth a tillage tool can go. * There is less benefit to deep loosening in fields high in organic matter, or in those with a history of manure application or regular forage crop production. * Deep loosening can expose soil to erosion, especially if the subsoiling operation produces a large area of disturbed soil with little remaining residue cover. * Subsoiling costs a farmer money in fuel, time and equipment use. Costs can increase if soil ripping brings up large clods, which then must be broken down by additional tillage passes. As harvest nears an end, Vyn recommends farmers refrain from field activities that could cause soil compaction next year. "Avoidance is always the best management practice when we deal with compaction," he said. "Avoid imposing a load on the soil when soils are too wet for that operation. Avoid doing tillage when soils are wet. Avoid planting when soils are wet. Avoid, where possible, imposing high axle loads with a combine or grain carts at harvesttime when soils are too wet. "Also, try to avoid the creation of ruts in the field, unless it is absolutely essential in order to remove a crop prior to snowfall in the fall." Writer: Steve Leer, (765) 494-8415, sleer@purdue.edu Source: Tony Vyn, (765) 496-3757, tvyn@purdue.edu Ag Communications: (765) 494-2722; Beth Forbes, bforbes@aes.purdue.edu; http://www.agriculture.purdue.edu/AgComm/public/agnews/ Related Web sites: Purdue Extension tillage articles Purdue University Department of Agronomy Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; purduenews@purdue.edu Weather Information Table Week Ending Sunday November 3, 2002 --------------------------------------------------------------- | Past Week Weather Summary Data |--------------------------------- Station | Air | | Avg | Temperature | Precip. |4 in. |---------------|-----------|Soil |Hi |Lo |Avg|DFN|Total |Days|Temp ------------------------------------------------------------- Northwest (1) | Chalmers_5W |56 25 41 -9 0.61 2 Valparaiso_AP_I |52 24 40 -8 0.13 1 Wanatah |53 22 39 -8 0.14 1 46 Wheatfield |54 25 40 -7 0.28 2 Winamac |52 24 39 -8 0.49 2 42 North Central(2)| Plymouth |53 24 39 -9 0.23 2 South_Bend |52 22 39 -8 0.00 0 Young_America |55 26 41 -7 0.51 1 Northeast (3) | Columbia_City |51 24 39 -8 0.15 1 44 Fort_Wayne |51 23 40 -8 0.14 1 West Central (4)| Greencastle |56 24 41 -9 0.88 3 Perrysville |57 26 41 -8 0.61 3 51 Spencer_Ag |57 23 41 -7 1.22 4 Terre_Haute_AFB |58 23 43 -7 0.70 2 W_Lafayette_6NW |56 26 41 -7 0.61 2 46 Central (5) | Eagle_Creek_AP |57 28 42 -8 0.64 4 Greenfield |56 25 40 -9 0.86 4 Indianapolis_AP |57 24 42 -8 0.61 2 Indianapolis_SE |56 26 41 -9 0.80 4 Tipton_Ag |54 25 41 -6 0.34 2 52 East Central (6)| Farmland |57 24 41 -6 0.43 1 42 New_Castle |55 27 41 -6 0.66 3 Southwest (7) | Evansville |62 23 46 -7 0.99 5 Freelandville |59 27 43 -8 1.51 4 Shoals |57 25 42 -9 1.59 4 Stendal |57 26 43 -8 0.76 3 Vincennes_5NE |58 29 43 -7 1.67 5 46 South Central(8)| Leavenworth |56 27 44 -7 0.78 4 Oolitic |59 22 43 -6 1.46 3 52 Tell_City |60 33 48 -5 1.01 5 Southeast (9) | Brookville |58 28 43 -5 1.01 2 Milan_5NE |56 27 42 -6 1.01 3 Scottsburg |59 27 43 -8 1.17 3 ------------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------------- | Accumulation | April 1, 2002 thru Station | November 3, 2002 | Precipitation |GDD Base 50oF | | | | | |Total | DFN |Days|Total| DFN ------------------------------------------------------------- Northwest (1) | Chalmers_5W |20.32 -4.62 77 3351 +134 Valparaiso_AP_I |19.73 -7.82 75 3359 +415 Wanatah |20.19 -6.13 83 3162 +373 Wheatfield |24.74 -0.53 64 3225 +381 Winamac |22.94 -2.45 76 3277 +342 North Central(2)| Plymouth |20.85 -5.38 79 3142 +48 South_Bend |17.64 -8.00 74 3338 +439 Young_America |24.31 -0.46 66 3392 +361 Northeast (3) | Columbia_City |21.33 -3.38 69 3087 +324 Fort_Wayne |22.49 -0.16 65 3362 +315 West Central (4)| Greencastle |33.88 +5.41 74 3282 -178 Perrysville |31.47 +5.02 73 3467 +261 Spencer_Ag |36.11 +7.68 75 3540 +314 Terre_Haute_AFB |35.99 +9.19 71 3775 +342 W_Lafayette_6NW |27.79 +2.71 80 3421 +389 Central (5) | Eagle_Creek_AP |27.01 +1.91 76 3783 +386 Greenfield |35.05 +7.51 76 3555 +292 Indianapolis_AP |25.62 +0.52 67 3924 +527 Indianapolis_SE |30.59 +4.80 68 3554 +164 Tipton_Ag |24.94 -0.98 71 3272 +341 East Central (6)| Farmland |23.12 -1.57 68 3367 +510 New_Castle |26.53 +0.06 63 3061 +131 Southwest (7) | Evansville |28.41 +2.83 64 4449 +487 Freelandville |33.02 +6.47 63 3984 +434 Shoals |30.25 +1.48 61 3853 +411 Stendal |32.05 +3.66 62 4180 +463 Vincennes_5NE |37.00 +10.45 75 4088 +538 South Central(8)| Leavenworth |31.89 +2.93 70 3968 +551 Oolitic |33.38 +5.64 73 3745 +474 Tell_City |32.25 +3.28 59 4528 +685 Southeast (9) | Brookville |28.13 +1.52 66 3844 +748 Milan_5NE |35.57 +8.96 80 3461 +365 Scottsburg |33.95 +6.60 69 3778 +245 ------------------------------------------------------------- DFN = Departure From Normal (Using 1961-90 Normals Period). 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. Copyright 2002: 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. The INDIANA CROP WEATHER REPORT (USPS 675-770), (ISSN 0442-817X) is issued weekly April through November by the Indiana Agricultural Statistics Service, 1435 Win Hentschel Blvd, Suite B105, West Lafayette IN 47906-4145. Second Class postage paid at Lafayette IN. For information on subscribing, send request to above address. POSTMASTER: Send address change to the Indiana Agricultural Statistics Service, 1435 Win Hentschel Blvd, Suite B105, West Lafayette IN 47906-4145. Source: Indiana Agricultural Statistics Service