Perfect Weather for Crop Growth
Published: Friday, August 23, 2024
The following is from the Michigan Field Office of USDA's National Agricultural Statistics Service for the week ending Aug. 18.
Pleasant temperatures and ample rainfall encouraged crop progress. There were 4.8 days suitable for fieldwork.
Fifty-five percent of Michigan corn was at or past dough stage. Tar spot was present in some fields and farmers were gauging severity before treatment.
Seventy-one percent of the crop was in good to excellent condition, an increase from last week.
Oat harvest on many farms was complete; 83% of the crop had been harvested.
White mold continued to be problematic in dry edible beans and in suspectable soybean varieties.
Early campaign sugarbeet harvest was expected to begin soon with higher yields than average anticipated.
Michigan's table potato harvest was underway as chip potato harvest picked up.
Hay producers were able to begin harvest on fourth cutting alfalfa early last week in the South.
Other activities last week included scouting, planting cover crops after wheat, baling wheat straw, hauling hay, chopping alfalfa for silage, alfalfa seeding and tending to livestock.
Fruit
Continued cool evening temperatures benefited apple development. Early variety harvest was ongoing, and growers were preparing to begin more widely planted variety harvest soon. Many apple varieties are a week or two earlier than normal.
Vegetables
Weather conditions were generally favorable as the Michigan vegetable season moved ahead.
Pumpkins were growing well, while sweet corn producers were reporting strong yields.
Potato harvest was underway in southern Michigan, with growers monitoring their fields for late blight.
A variety of vegetables were hitting the market, including broccoli, eggplants, peppers and tomatoes.
Cucurbit downy mildew has been detected on cucumbers in 17 counties across the state to date; downy mildew was also present in onions.
Additional disease pressure was noted in carrot and cabbage fields, leading producers to remain on guard against further outbreaks.
Topsoil moisture was rated very short, 4%; short, 7%; adequate, 75%; surplus, 14%.
Subsoil moisture was rated very short, 4%; short, 10%; adequate, 76%; surplus, 10%.
The crop progress schedule (last week, previous week, 2023 and five-year average) showed: corn silking, 97, 93, 88, 94; corn dough, 55, 39, 44, 54; corn dented, 14, 7, 11, 11; soybeans blooming, 97, 93, 87, 94; soybeans setting pods, 90, 71, 76, 80; dry edible beans setting pods, 78, 65, 40, 67; dry edible beans dropping leaves, 7, NA, 0, 1; alfalfa hay, second cutting, 96, 93, 80, 90; alfalfa hay, third cutting, 54, 46, 51, 50; alfalfa hay, fourth cutting, 2, NA, 1, 1; other hay, second cutting, 84, 79, 68, 77; other hay, third cutting, 23, 16, 19, 20; oats mature, 98, 92, 74, 87; oats harvested, 83, 61, 39, 57.
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