Soybeans grow in a soggy field Tuesday along Blackberry Road north of Harrison Road. Crops locally have seen gains with the wet weather. Staff photo by Greg Swiercz
The old rule of thumb for Midwestern farmers is that corn should be“knee high by the Fourth of July.”
In most parts of Michiana, this year’s stalks have reached that milestone, according to local agriculture officials.
“This corn is probably on pace to be one of the best corn crops in our area in a while,” said Virgil Brown, general manager of the Starke County Co-op in Hamlet.
The main problem Indiana farmers have faced this year, Brown said, is that rain has prevented them from getting into their fields at times to spray herbicides or apply nitrogen. Wet conditions also forced many corn growers to plant their fields later than usual in May.
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