The latest crop and weather report from the Iowa Department of Agriculture confirms what most Iowa farmers experienced first-hand — the harvest came to a standstill last week.
Iowa Ag Secretary Bill Northey says Iowa farmers are "anxiously awaiting dry weather and sun" so they can finish the harvest. According to the crop report, "almost all field work" was halted last week by the rain, mud and cloudy conditions which did little to help dry things out.
Four-one percent of the state’s corn crop had been harvested as of Monday. That’s behind the normal pace. Three-quarters of Iowa’s soybean crop has been harvested — about 14 % behind last year. As an added worry, manure storage lagoons have "reached capacity" because of the rainfall and an inability to spread that liquid manure out as fertilizer in fields because its raining.