in-crop-weather
                    INDIANA WEEKLY WEATHER & CROPS

Released: Monday, 3PM June 14, 1999 Vol. 49, #11 West Lafayette, IN


             CROP REPORT FOR WEEK ENDING JUNE 13

Unseasonably hot temperatures with several days above 90
degrees placed stress on crops, pastures and livestock last
week according to the Indiana Agricultural Statistics Service. 
Storms occurred in isolated areas, resulting in some wind and
hail damage.  Winter wheat harvest is underway.  Major
activities included post-emergence spraying, side-dressing
corn, baling hay and care of livestock.    

                     Corn and Soybeans

Corn planting is complete.  Growth and development is
advancing ahead of normal.   Height in many corn fields is
already above knee-high.  Virtually all of the corn planted
acreage has emerged.   Soybean planted acreage advanced to 98
percent complete,  far ahead of last year's 87 percent and the
5-year average of 78 percent.  By area, soybean planting is
100 percent complete in the north, 99 percent in the central
region and 93 percent in the south. 

                       Winter Wheat
                             
Winter wheat condition is rated 81 percent good to excellent
compared with 64 percent last year.  Wheat  harvest is 1
percent complete compared with 2 percent at this time last
year.  Most of the harvest has occurred in the southwestern
area of the state.  Wheat remains in mostly good condition
with limited disease problems.
 
                        Other Crops

Pasture condition was rated 10 percent excellent, 62 percent
good, 25 percent fair, and 3 percent poor.  Transplanting of
tobacco is 75 percent complete, compared with 45 percent last
year and 54 percent for the average.  First cutting of alfalfa
hay is 95 percent complete compared with 80 percent last year
and 62 percent for the 5-year average.   

               Days Suitable and Soil Moisture
                              
For the week ending Friday, 6.4 days were rated suitable for
fieldwork.   Topsoil moisture was rated  5 percent very short,
28 percent short, 63 percent adequate and 4 percent surplus. 
Subsoil moisture was rated 4 percent very short, 18 percent
short, 74 percent adequate and 4 percent surplus.  

                          Crop Progress
---------------------------------------------------
                     : This : Last: Last : 5-Year
     Crop            : Week : Week: Year :  Avg
---------------------------------------------------
                               Percent

Soybeans Planted        98    96    87      78
Soybeans Emerged        93    84    78      NA
Wheat Harvested          1    NA     2       0
Alfalfa, First Cutting  95    70    80      62
 
                          Crop Condition
-----------------------------------------------------
                : Very :      :      :      : Excel-
     Crop       : Poor : Poor : Fair : Good : lent
-----------------------------------------------------
                            Percent

Corn                0      2     16     61     21
Soybeans            0      1     22     61     16
Winter Wheat        0      2     17     60     21
Pasture             0      3     25     62     10


             Soil Moisture
-----------------------------------
               : This : Last : Last
               : Week : Week : Year
------------------------------------
                       Percent

Topsoil
  Very Short       5      0      1
  Short           28      4      3
  Adequate        63     74     37
  Surplus          4     22     59

Subsoil
  Very Short       4      1      1
  Short           18      9      5
  Adequate        74     77     50
  Surplus          4     13     44

--Ralph W. Gann, State Statistician
--Bud Bever, Agricultural Statistician
  E-Mail Address: nass-in@nass.usda.gov
  http://info.aes.purdue.edu/agstat/nass.html


                     Uneven Corn Fields

The buzz at Paul's Pretty Good Pastry Shop late last week
centered around corn fields that had come up just fine and
looked nice and uniform early on, but have since taken a turn
for the worse, especially during the recent hot spell.  My own
windshield surveys in the last few days confirm that some
fields simply look ugly in their unevenness in color and
height.  What are some of the reasons for this sudden turn of
events?

First of all, remember that successful germination and
emergence do not guarantee continued success in the
development of a corn crop.  The second hurdle for that crop
is to become "well established" as it continues on its way
towards the critical pollination period.  Becoming "well
established" revolves around the ability of the crop to
develop an extensive root system.

An otherwise perfect-looking field can turn "ugly" almost
overnight.  The causes of such a quick turnaround almost
always result from some sort of limitation of root
development.   Uneven development that is unrelated to uneven
emergence often begins to appear some time after growth stages
V4 to V6 (4- to 6-leaf collars) when root development normally
begins to speed up dramatically.

In such fields, check for limiting factors such as soil
compaction, herbicide injury, low soil pH, poor drainage, or
root diseases.  The effects of such root-limiting factors are
usually accentuated in the presence of excessive heat like
much of Indiana has experienced during the past week.

Permanent roots developing horizontally instead of a downward
angle suggest the presence of severe soil compaction. 
Permanent roots (and/or seed roots) developing primarily in
the planter furrow suggest the presence of severe sidewall
compaction by the planter's double-disc openers.

Visible leaf rolling has been a common correlated symptom of
compaction in heat-stressed fields late last week as the
restricted root system could not keep up with the
transpiration load of the plants. Leaf rolling has also been
evident in those lower-lying areas of fields where corn root
growth was previously restricted by early excessively wet
soils.

Permanent roots that are 'stubbed off' AND appear to have been
fed upon suggest grub or rootworm larvae damage.  Permanent
roots that are disfigured (swollen, club ends, excessive
secondary root development or 'bottle-brushing') suggest
herbicide injury. Permanent roots with scattered discolored
areas, with water-soaked lesions, suggest a disease infection. 

Permanent roots that appear 'stubbed off' and shriveled, but
NOT eaten, suggest excessively dry surface soils.  Permanent
roots that are uniformly discolored (yellowish or brownish)
suggest excessively wet soils or excessively low soil pH.
Permanent roots whose tips appear 'burned' off suggest injury
from excessive amounts of starter fertilizer.

--R. L. (Bob) Nielsen, Agronomy Dept., Purdue University


                  Weather Data
        for Week ending June 13, 1999
--------------------------------------------------           
                | Past Week Weather Summary Data   
                |---------------------------------
 Station        |      Air      |           | Avg  
                |  Temperature  |  Precip.  |4 in.  
                |---------------|-----------|Soil 
                |Hi |Lo |Avg|DFN|Total |Days|Temp 
-------------------------------------------------- 
Bloomington      93  67  81 +11   0.04     1     
Bluffton         92  67  80 +12   0.46     3   78
Butlerville      92  64  79  +9   1.07     4   79
Castleton        90  67  79 +10   0.22     2     
Crawfordsville   93  65  78  +9   0.52     2   77
Dubois_Ag        91  65  79  +9   0.48     2   86
Evansville       91  70  81  +8   0.57     2     
Farmland         94  61  79 +12   0.01     1   75
Fort_Wayne       92  67  80 +11   0.10     2     
Freelandville    91  68  80  +9   0.00     0     
Greenfield       92  67  79 +10   0.21     2     
Indianapolis_AP  92  68  80 +10   0.00     0     
Indianapolis_SE  90  65  79  +9   0.28     1     
Logansport       93  68  80 +12   0.95     3     
New_Castle       92  66  78 +11   0.50     3     
Perrysville      92  64  80 +11   0.71     2   83
Plymouth         94  62  80 +12   1.70     2     
Scottsburg       93  66  80  +9   0.21     2     
Shoals           91  63  78  +8   0.84     1     
South_Bend       95  65  80 +13   0.53     2     
Tell_City        92  70  81  +9   0.00     0     
Terre_Haute_Ag   94  68  80 +11   0.47     4   79
Tipton_Ag        91  66  79 +11   1.25     1   77
Valparaiso_Ag    91  62  77 +10   0.70     3     
Vincennes_5NE    93  67  80  +9   0.57     3   81
Wanatah          94  60  78 +11   0.98     3   82
W_Lafayette_6NW  94  67  80 +12   0.39     2   86
Wheatfield       94  64  79 +12   1.58     3     
Winamac          93  64  80 +12   0.06     2     
Young_America    92  67  79 +11   0.68     3     
--------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------
                |        Accumulation           
                |    April 1, 1999 thru       
 Station        |       June 14, 1999            
                |---------------------------------
                |Precipitation|  GDD Base 50oF   
                |-------------|-------------------
                | Total | DFN |Days|Total| DFN  
--------------------------------------------------
Bloomington       10.25  +0.03  30  1008  +187
Bluffton           7.30  -1.82  27   879  +188
Butlerville        9.25  -0.77  38   967   +98
Castleton          9.12  -0.41  36   930  +161
Crawfordsville     9.62  -0.11  31   797   +28
Dubois_Ag          9.75  -1.12  32  1016  +188
Evansville        12.29  +1.95  29  1144  +152
Farmland           7.78  -1.36  35   858  +246
Fort_Wayne        10.81  +2.44  32   843  +193
Freelandville     10.62  +0.05  30  1001  +157
Greenfield         8.08  -1.67  36   927  +191
Indianapolis_AP    9.41  +0.24  34  1009  +215
Indianapolis_SE    8.93  -0.60  38   901  +132
Logansport        10.75  +1.96  33   869  +199
New_Castle         8.16  -2.04  34   781  +151
Perrysville        9.44  -0.29  32   955  +222
Plymouth          12.34  +2.90  32   850  +149
Scottsburg         7.44  -2.81  26  1046  +203
Shoals             9.42  -1.74  27   949  +140
South_Bend         9.80  +1.03  32   881  +265
Tell_City         10.07  -1.32  22  1131  +205
Terre_Haute_Ag    10.12  +0.25  29  1081  +277
Tipton_Ag          9.58  +0.40  29   805  +170
Valparaiso_Ag     10.05  +0.42  31   843  +206
Vincennes_5NE     11.73  +1.16  39  1043  +199
Wanatah           10.65  +1.56  33   721  +135
W_Lafayette_6NW   11.81  +2.65  30   897  +220
Wheatfield        12.74  +3.81  28   866  +251
Winamac           11.09  +2.10  29   861  +192
Young_America      9.50  +0.71  31   808  +138
--------------------------------------------------
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 1999:  AWIS, Inc.  All Rights Reserved.


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