in-crop-weather

State
Indiana Crop Weather

Week Ending Date  
May 18, 2003

Issue
IN-CW2003

Agricultural Summary 

Another week of rain and wet field conditions prevented fieldwork 
during most of the week, according to the Indiana Agricultural 
Statistics Service. Thunderstorms continued in many areas during 
the week. Soils are saturated in many fields and weather conditions
were not favorable for drying out fields during most of last week.
Ponding of water exists in low lying areas of some fields, but 
flooding along some river bottom fields has started to subside. 
It will take a few days of favorable drying conditions before many
farmers can return to tillage of fields and planting of corn and
soybeans. Corn planting is 4 days behind average. Soybean planting 
is about 10 days behind the average pace. Some replanting will be 
necessary in drowned out areas.           
                         

Field Crops Report 

There was 1.0 day suitable for fieldwork. Sixty-one percent of the
intended corn acreage is planted compared with 13 percent last year 
and 70 percent for the 5-year average. By area, 72 percent of the 
corn acreage is planted in the north, 65 percent in the central region
and 30 percent in the south. Forty-five percent of the corn acreage
has emerged, compared with 7 percent last year and 46 percent for the
average. Twenty-five percent of the soybean acreage is planted 
compared with 4 percent last year and 50 percent for the average. By 
area, 37 percent of the soybean acreage is planted in the north, 25 
percent in the central region and 5 percent in the south. Twelve 
percent of the soybean acreage has emerged compared with 2 percent 
last year and 26 percent for the average. 

Virtually all of the winter wheat acreage is now jointed. Sixty-two
percent of the winter wheat is headed compared with 48 percent last 
year and 66 percent for the average. Winter wheat condition is rated 
82 percent good to excellent compared with 57 percent last year at
this time. 

Major activities during the week were repairing equipment, moving 
grain to market, hauling manure and taking care of livestock. 

Livestock, Pasture and Range Report 

Pasture condition is rated 17 percent excellent, 60 percent good, 
20 percent fair and 3 percent poor. Pastures and forage crops continue
to improve aided by the recent showers. Livestock remain in mostly 
good condition. Spring calving remains active. 

                               
                    Crop Progress Table
--------------------------------------------------------
                          : This : Last : Last : 5-Year
     Crop                 : Week : Week : Year :  Avg
--------------------------------------------------------
                                     Percent
Corn Planted                 61     58     13     70
Corn Emerged                 45     32      7     46
Soybeans Planted             25     21      4     50
Soybeans Emerged             12     NA      2     26
Winter Wheat Headed          62     35     48     66
Tobacco Plants Set            4      2      1     10

       
                    Crop Condition Table
--------------------------------------------------------
                   : Very :      :      :      : Excel-
     Crop          : Poor : Poor : Fair : Good : lent
--------------------------------------------------------
                                  Percent
Pasture               0      3      20     60     17
Winter Wheat 2003     1      2      15     56     26
Winter Wheat 2002     2      8      33     47     10

   Soil Moisture & Days Suitable For Fieldwork Table
-------------------------------------------------------
                   : This  : Last  :  Last
                   : Week  : Week  :  Year
-------------------------------------------------------
                           Percent
Topsoil
  Very Short           0        0       0
  Short                0        1       0
  Adequate            31       27      15
  Surplus             69       72      85
Subsoil
  Very Short           0        0       0
  Short                4        7       0
  Adequate            50       56      25
  Surplus             46       37      75
Days Suitable        1.0      0.6     0.4
Contact information
--Greg Preston, 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

          EFFECTS OF FLOODING OR PONDING ON YOUNG CORN

Recent intense rainfall events (technically referred to as "toad
stranglers" or "goose drownders") have caused flooding of low-lying corn
fields or ponding in poorly drained swales within fields. Other areas
within fields, while not technically flooded or ponded, may remain
saturated for lengthy periods of time. What are the prospects for
recently planted or emerged corn? 

For corn that has been recently planted, but is not yet emerged, the
obvious risk is with surface soil crusts that may develop following a
severe downpour. The risk is particularly high for conventionally tilled
fields. Corn emergence can be especially challenging when a dense
surface crust "sets up." The resistance of a crust to coleoptile
penetration often results in corkscrewed mesocotyl elongation below the
surface and eventual leafing out underground if coleoptile emergence is
delayed long enough. 

Monitor high-risk fields where corn emergence has not yet occurred and
be prepared to use a rotary hoe if necessary to break up the crust and
aid emergence. Don't dawdle on using the rotary hoe until the crust has
baked dry into "concrete." Operate the hoe at a good speed and do not
worry about the occasional corn seedling that is flipped out of the
soil. A side benefit to breaking a dense soil crust is the resulting
enhanced soil aeration. 

The "wet feet" caused by flooding or ponding creates other risks for
corn that has already emerged, primarily because soil oxygen is
depleted after about 48 hours of soil saturation. Without oxygen, the
plants cannot perform critical life sustaining functions; e.g. nutrient
and water uptake is impaired and root growth is inhibited. 

The growth stage of a corn crop greatly influences whether ponding or
saturated soils kills, severely stunts, or mildly stunts the corn
plants. Plants younger than V6 (six visible leaf collars) are
susceptible to damage for two reasons. First of all,the growing point 
is at or below the soil surface from VE to about V6 and therefore is
directly subject to the stress of oxygen- depleted conditions. In 
plants older than V6, the growing point may be above the water level
and the likelihood for survival improves greatly. 

Secondly, plants younger than V6 are in the process of trying to
successfully establish a vigorous root system. Stunting or death of
roots by oxygen-depletion can be a major stress for a plant that is 
not yet fully established. 

Prior to leaf stage V6, corn can survive only two to four days of
flooded or ponded conditions. If temperatures are warm during that
time (mid-70s or higher) such young plants may not survive 24 hours.
Cooler temperatures prolong survival. 

The likelihood of crop injury is less where the flooded or ponded
conditions last less than 48 hours. To confirm plant survival, check
the color of the growing point and look for new leaf growth three to
five days after water drains from the field. Healthy growing points 
will be firm and yellowish-white, not mushy and discolored. 

Plants older than V6 will tolerate ponding or saturated soils longer 
for essentially the opposite reasons. As plants develop beyond V6,
rapid stalk elongation elevates the growing point region above the
soil surface and, thus, away from the direct stress of flooded soils.
Secondly, an older crop's root system will simply be larger and
consequently the crop can tolerate a certain amount of root death
without dying or dramatic stunting. 

Nonetheless, extended periods of saturated soils plus warm temperatures
will take their toll on the overall vigor of the crop. Some root death
will occur and new root growth will be stunted until the soil dries to
acceptable moisture content. As a result, plants may be subject to
greater injury during a subsequently dry summer due to their restricted
root systems. 

Concomitant (I found a new word in the dictionary!) with the direct
stress of saturated soils on a corn crop, flooding and ponding can
result in significant losses of soil nitrogen through the processes of
denitrification and leaching of nitrate N. Significant loss of soil N
will cause nitrogen deficiencies and possible additional yield loss.
Brouder & Joern (1998) offer guidelines in estimating the amount of
nitrogen loss due to saturated soils and making decisions on 
application of additional nitrogen fertilizer to fields once ponded. 

Lengthy periods of wet soil conditions favor the development of
seedling blight diseases, especially those caused by Pythium fungi
(Ortiz-Ribbing, 2001). Poorly drained areas of fields are most at risk
for the development of these diseases and so are also at most risk for
potential replant operations if significant stand loss occurs due to
seedling blight outbreaks. 

Certain diseases, such as common smut and crazy top, may also become
greater risks due to flooding and cool temperatures (Bissonnette, 2002).
The fungus that causes crazy top depends on saturated soil conditions
to infect corn seedlings. The common smut fungal organism is ubiquitous
in soils and can infect young corn plants through tissue damaged by
floodwaters. There is limited hybrid resistance to either of these two
diseases and predicting damage is difficult until later in the growing
season. 

Other flooding / ponding on-line references: 

Bissonnette, Suzanne. 2002. Odd Plant Diseases Due to Odd Season.
  Univ.of Illinois Pest & Crop Bulletin, 6/21/02. Online at
  <http://www.ag.uiuc.edu/ cespubs/pest/articles/200213j.html>. 
  [URL verified 5/5/03].
Brouder, Sylvie and Brad Joern. 1998. Predicting Early Season N Loss.
  Purdue Univ. Online at <http://www.kingcorn.org/news/articles.98/
  smb9802. html>. [URL verified 5/5/03].
Farnham, Dale. 1999. Corn survival in wet conditions. Iowa State Univ.
  Integrated Crop Management Newsletter, 5/24/1999. Online at <http://
  www.ent.iastate.edu/ipm/icm/1999/5-24-1999/wetcorn.html>. 
  [URL verified 5/5/03].
Nafziger, Emerson. 1999. Hail and Flooding Damage in Corn. Univ. of 
  Illinois Pest & Crop Bulletin, 6/18/99. Online at <http://spectre.
  ag.uiuc.edu/cespubs/pest/articles/199913h.html>.
  [URL verified 5/5/03]. 
National Soil Survey Center.1996. Soil Quality Indicators: Soil Crusts.
  USDA-Natural Resources Conservation Service. Online at <http://soils.
  usda.gov/sqi/files/sq_sev _1.pdf>. [URL verified 5/5/03]. 
Ortiz-Ribbing, Loretta. 2001. Seedling Blights Caused by Pythium spp.
  Univ. of Illinois Pest & Crop Bulletin, 5/4/2001. Online at <http://
  www.ag.uiuc.edu/cespubs/pest/articles/200106g.html>.
  [URL verified 5/5/03]. 
Thomison, Peter. 1995. Effects of Flooding and Ponding on Corn 
  (AGF-118-95). Ohio State Univ. Online at <http://www.ag.ohio-state.
  edu/~ohioline/agf-fact/0118. html>. [URL verified 5/5/03]. 

Don't forget, this and other timely information about corn can be viewed
at the Chat'n Chew Cafe on the World Wide Web at <http://www.kingcorn.
org/cafe>. For other information about corn, take a look at the Corn 
Growers' Guidebook on the World Wide Web at <http://www.kingcorn.org/>. 

Bob Nielsen, Department of Agronomy, Purdue University. 

                 
                    Weather Information Table
     
               Week Ending Sunday May 18, 2003
---------------------------------------------------------------
                | Past Week Weather Summary Data   
                |---------------------------------
 Station        |      Air      |           | Avg  
                |  Temperature  |  Precip.  |4 in.  
                |---------------|-----------|Soil 
                |Hi |Lo |Avg|DFN|Total |Days|Temp 
------------------------------------------------------------- 
Northwest (1)   |                                
Chalmers_5W     |71  44  57  -5   0.21     1   58
Valparaiso_AP_I |72  42  56  -5   0.37     2     
Wanatah         |72  39  55  -4   0.48     2   58
Wheatfield      |71  43  56  -4   0.57     3     
Winamac         |70  43  56  -5   0.56     3   57
North Central(2)|                                
Plymouth        |71  40  54  -7   0.81     3     
South_Bend      |71  38  54  -6   0.91     2     
Young_America   |71  43  58  -3   0.63     1     
Northeast (3)   |                                
Columbia_City   |69  41  55  -4   0.89     5     
Fort_Wayne      |68  38  55  -5   1.00     2     
West Central (4)|                                
Greencastle     |72  46  60  -4   0.31     2     
Perrysville     |75  46  61  -1   0.49     2   62
Spencer_Ag      |74  46  61  -2   0.75     4     
Terre_Haute_AFB |75  43  62  -1   0.68     2     
W_Lafayette_6NW |73  45  59  -2   0.67     3   62
Central (5)     |                                
Eagle_Creek_AP  |72  48  61  -2   0.53     2     
Greenfield      |71  43  59  -3   0.49     3     
Indianapolis_AP |73  42  61  -2   0.88     2     
Indianapolis_SE |73  45  60  -3   0.85     3     
Tipton_Ag       |71  44  58  -3   0.79     2   63
East Central (6)|                                
Farmland        |71  43  58  -2   0.90     4   58
New_Castle      |70  42  56  -4   0.28     2     
Southwest (7)   |                                
Evansville      |74  48  64  -2   1.46     4     
Freelandville   |75  50  62  -2   0.56     3     
Shoals          |78  46  62  +0   1.32     3     
Stendal         |76  49  64  -1   2.95     4     
Vincennes_5NE   |77  48  63  +0   1.00     4   62
South Central(8)|                                
Leavenworth     |77  49  63  +0   1.52     4     
Oolitic         |75  47  61  -1   0.86     4   62
Tell_City       |77  51  66  +2   2.32     4     
Southeast (9)   |                                
Brookville      |75  43  61  +1   0.99     4     
Milan_5NE       |73  44  60  -1   1.00     4     
Scottsburg      |76  46  61  -2   1.15     5     
------------------------------------------------------------- 

-------------------------------------------------------------                                                            
                |        Accumulation           
                |      April 1, 2003 thru       
 Station        |       May 18, 2003         
                | Precipitation   |GDD Base 50oF 
                |      |     |    |     |
                |Total | DFN |Days|Total| DFN  
-------------------------------------------------------------
Northwest (1)   |
Chalmers_5W     |  9.02  +3.06  22   330   +27
Valparaiso_AP_I |  8.38  +2.20  18   308   +69
Wanatah         |  9.09  +3.17  19   262   +60
Wheatfield      |  9.02  +3.24  18   314   +94
Winamac         |  6.80  +1.11  19   317   +60
North Central(2)|
Plymouth        |  7.49  +1.43  18   280    +8
South_Bend      |  8.60  +2.94  18   310   +87
Young_America   |  6.52  +0.89  20   359  +108
Northeast (3)   |
Columbia_City   |  8.46  +2.84  24   283   +81
Fort_Wayne      |  8.52  +3.16  18   303   +67
West Central (4)|
Greencastle     |  7.26  +0.78  22   372   +35
Perrysville     |  6.97  +0.76  18   420  +130
Spencer_Ag      |  8.02  +1.19  23   417  +122
Terre_Haute_AFB |  7.47  +0.91  19   448  +113
W_Lafayette_6NW |  7.96  +1.92  23   392  +135
Central (5)     |
Eagle_Creek_AP  |  7.10  +1.06  19   436  +112
Greenfield      |  8.37  +1.77  22   400  +114
Indianapolis_AP |  7.61  +1.57  19   446  +122
Indianapolis_SE |  7.56  +1.15  19   407  +101
Tipton_Ag       | 10.43  +4.27  17   316   +90
East Central (6)|
Farmland        |  6.50  +0.77  19   348  +130
New_Castle      |  5.47  -1.20  18   301   +77
Southwest (7)   |
Evansville      |  8.93  +2.09  22   570  +117
Freelandville   | 10.63  +3.80  21   478  +120
Shoals          |  9.58  +2.39  19   485  +137
Stendal         | 11.69  +4.22  20   533  +133
Vincennes_5NE   |  9.56  +2.73  22   500  +142
South Central(8)|
Leavenworth     |  9.61  +2.18  24   499  +144
Oolitic         |  9.11  +2.30  22   450  +138
Tell_City       | 11.25  +3.57  20   621  +205
Southeast (9)   |
Brookville      |  6.54  -0.06  19   454  +191
Milan_5NE       |  8.67  +2.07  25   423  +160
Scottsburg      | 11.41  +4.57  23   471  +109 
------------------------------------------------------------- 
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 2003:  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