Spring has come early in the Buckeye state. And so has the harvest.
Farmers harvesting food crops early after warm spring
by Mary Vanac, Columbus Dispatch -- June 21, 2012
[...]
This year’s early spring and unusually warm weather in late May are bringing harvests of sweet corn and other crops earlier than usual [in Ohio].
“Consumers (are) getting caught off guard,” said Brad Bergefurd, extension educator of horticulture, agriculture and natural resources at Ohio State University.
Because of that, seasons for produce such as strawberries and asparagus were over before they usually began, he said. The overall season for corn, however, is not expected to be shorter than normal.
[...]
“It’s a little strange,” said Tom Witten, the lead farmer in the family. “There seems to be a warming trend globally. We just picked 50 bushels of bell peppers. That beats our previous record by two weeks.”
[...]
No worries folks, that's just
the climate, changing "seasonal variability."
This early harbinger of "good tidings" is visiting the land of the razorbacks too ...
Ark. row crops moving toward early harvest
by Associated Press, posted on businessweek.com -- June 20, 2012
(AP) -- Arkansas row crop farmers are watching their plants mature at an unprecedented pace due to early planting that was possible thanks to lengthy, warm spring weather.
[...]
"If everything keeps going like it has so far this year, we could be harvesting two to three weeks earlier," said Jeremy Ross, extension soybean agronomist for the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture. [...]
"The warm weather March through June has really pushed the corn crop along," said Jason Kelley, extension agronomist for the division. "We had the warmest March on record, which aided in early planting and allowed early planted corn to emerge and grow quickly."
[...]
More time for golf, I guess. How many of you farmers ever golf?
Of course, unseasonable warm summers and unstoppable early springs, don't always equal less time on the tractor.
Sometimes it means less food on the shelves.
Hurt: Indiana Corn Crop is at a Crisis
by Gary Truitt, hoosieragtoday.com -- June 20, 2012
All crops are suffering, but corn is nearing its pollination phase when dry weather can quickly reduce yield potential. A few southern Indiana cornfields have started pollinating, with the U.S. Department of Agriculture indicating that 2 percent of the state’s corn was silking as of June 17. Yield potential is likely wilting along with the parched crops.
[...]
Soybean conditions have also dropped, with state yield potential falling to about 45 bushels per acre, from an expected average of 49 at the start of the growing season. [...] At current crop prices for this fall, the reduction of 90 million bushels of Indiana corn and 20 million bushels of soybeans has a value of about $750 million. While all sectors of the state’s agriculture economy are being affected by dryness, corn and soybeans are the largest individual components by value.
So much less food, that even futures traders are taking notice. "What's another buck-a-bushel matter anyways," they are asking?
Their profit is still green.
Dry county: Weather threatens corn crop
by Ed Zagorski, Capital Newspapers, wiscnews.com -- June 20, 2012
[...]
“Right now, you can see the leaves on the corn plants rolling up to try and protect (themselves) from the heat,” Larsen said. “It’s just too dry out there.”
[...]
“Since Memorial Day, we’ve only had about six-tenths of an inch of rain out here,” Larsen said. “And there are not a lot of reserves left in the soil.”
[...]
Temperatures also have been above normal in parts of Indiana, Illinois, Ohio, Kansas, Nebraska and Iowa.
Recent U.S. Agriculture Department reports have shown deteriorating conditions in the corn crop across the Midwest. About 66 percent of the crop was rated in good-to-excellent condition for the week that ended June 10. That compared with 72 percent the previous week.
Traders on Monday questioned whether dry conditions would erode the quality of the crop and lead to a smaller harvest, thereby causing a rise in the price of corn.
[...]
Of course when the crop failures are near total -- the
impacts and the remedies, will effect more than the profit margins on virtual-paper traders' futures options.
Snyder wants disaster assistance for Michigan farmers
AnnArbor.com -- Jun 1, 2012
A rare extended period of summerlike temperatures in March caused trees to blossom early, only to be hit by April frosts and freezes. Farmers and extension agents say the one-two punch has all but wiped out the tart cherry crop, while other orchard fruits such as sweet cherries, apples, pears and peaches have suffered extensive damage.
[...]
It also cites crop damage due to blizzards, hail, tornadoes, flooding, excessive rain and lightning that occurred between Jan. 1 and May 11.
The governor says the crop losses currently are estimated at $223.5 million.
Well you cropless-farmers out there, there's always the
migrant workers circuit to look into, if the recent events in Georgia are any leading indicator.
Especially considering that the science-illiterate party will probably continue to get their farming-illiterate way -- "setting down roots" could prove to be a career ending move, if Nature continues to hold to its new uncharted course.
That ends today's Farm Report, sponsored by Monsanto, "the company that can make a Soybean grow anywhere!"
... onto other matters, the hometown team has an important game coming up this week-end ... bring your umbrellas, hats, and plenty of sunscreen -- it's gonna be another scorcher ... Stay Cool.