Dry weather helped Iowa farmers get a lot of work done in their fields last week.
The USDA’s Crop Report issued Monday shows 90 percent of the state’s corn crop has emerged and 77 percent is rated in good to excellent condition. Soybean planting was 91 percent complete as of Sunday.
State Climatologist Harry Hillaker says statewide last week there were six days suitable for fieldwork – the most Iowa has had all season. “Basically, in a nut shell, there were no widespread rain events at all,” Hillaker said.
Creston reported the most rain for the week with 1.28 inches, while over half of the state recorded no rain at all. Temperatures dipped as low as 39 degrees Wednesday morning at Chariton and Grinnell. Then, a heat wave arrived for the weekend.
“Sioux City got up to 95 degrees on Friday afternoon, which was just two degrees shy of a daily record high for that location,” Hillaker said. .