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Rains dampen harvest progress in Ohio

Rains moved into the Buckeye State the middle of last week which put a damper on harvest progress. The USDA National Ag statistics service in Ohio reports many farmers have completed soybean harvest and have moved on to corn. Dennis Vennekotter farms in near Continental in northwest Ohio and he tells Brownfield he has above-average soybean yields.

“Our beans were above average this year, we had really good beans around here. Probebly ten bushels an acre better than my usual average.” says Vennekotter.

As of Sunday, about 80 percent of soybeans have been harvested in Ohio which is well above the numbers from 2015 and the five year average.  Green stem continues to be a harvest obstacle for some farmers.

Vennekotter says his corn crops that had early rains are doing better than other areas that got rain later in the season.

“What we’ve harvested so far has been a little above average but the further east we go, they didn’t have as much rain so I’m afraid that might be a little below average, says Vennekotter.

About half of Ohio corn is harvested, which is well ahead of last year and the five year average. Some farmers have reported mold and kernel sprouting.

Temperatures were above average last week helping winter wheat emergence in some fields.