This farmer dumps his harvested corn on the fly while working in a field along County Road 275 West in Lafayette Township in Madison County on Tuesday. Staff photo by John P. Cleary
By the numbers
2012 data (most recent available):
• Number of farms: 737
• Land in farms: 205,147 acres
• Average size of farm: 278 acres
• Average value of products sold: $164.37 million
• Average per farm: $223,026
Source: USDA Census of Agriculture
ANDERSON — Despite this spring’s torrential rains, the impact on Indiana’s fall harvest might be less than feared.
On Wednesday, Bob Nielson of Purdue University said all the early signs are supportive that the effect won’t be as great as anticipated.
“We had a moderate summer after the rains,” he said. “In some parts of the state, there were areas that were dry.
“There were not many days of extreme heat, and conditions for pollination of the corn were good,” Nielson said. “In all probability, how much rain followed by a dry period will determine the yields.”
The United States Department of Agriculture is predicting that the corn and soybean yields in Indiana will be a couple of percentage points above average, he said.
“It’s too early to say for certain about the corn yields,” Nielson said. “The initial reports from the southwestern part of the state are good, but they didn’t have the excessive rainfall.”
Nielson said a report from Benton County had the corn yield at 225 bushels per acre, which is good, but not a record yield.
County Commissioner John Richwine, who farms in northwestern Madison County, said he has started harvesting soybeans, but not corn as of Wednesday.
“It’s all over the board,” he said of the soybean yield. “There are some places that got a little more rain and some that didn’t get as much rain. The poorer draining fields aren’t faring as well.”
Richwine said the soybean yields are ranging from 48 to 70 bushels per acre. He said last year’s average was 74 bushels per acre for beans.
“The corn yield will be like the beans,” he said. “There are areas of really good corn and areas of really bad corn.
“I think it will be a little bit better overall as a yield than might have been expected,” Richwine said.
Dan Grice, facilities manager at Rydman & Fox, said although the soybean yields are down, local farmers are indicating it’s better than expected.
“There has not been enough harvested to get a true picture,” he said. “There could be a lot of crop loss from the rain.
“I believe the impact will be more here because of the rains,” Grice said. “There is going to be a lot of variation from field to field. The impact may not be as great as anticipated.”
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