News

Arkansas farmer says crops are yielding average or better

Limited precipitation has helped harvest progress across Arkansas.

Corn harvest is starting to wind down with 89% harvested.  Sixty-one percent of the rice crop has been harvested with 95% mature, and 66% rated good to excellent.

Derek Haigwood farms about 90 miles northeast of Little Rock.  “Our medium grain has done very well, we’re very excited about their yields,’ he says.  “The long-grain rice and the hybrids that we’ve harvested are just really average.  The earlier we planted, the greater the yield.” He says the corn crop has a similar story, the earlier it was planted the better the yields.

But, he tells Brownfield he’s most excited about his soybean crop.  “The quality is really good,” he says.  “We’re excited about the yields so far.  Our 38-inch row spacing on old cotton beds are by far our greatest yielding beans right now.”

Statewide, soybean harvest is 25% complete, 51% of the crop is mature, and 64% is rated good to excellent. The cotton crop is 3% harvested with 95% percent of the crop opening bolls and 88% is rated good to excellent.  Peanut harvest is 13% complete with 31% of the crop dug. 

Topsoil moisture is rated 42% percent adequate to surplus and subsoil moisture is rated 39% adequate to surplus.

AUDIO: Derek Haigwood, September harvest update