Missouri Harvest Hastens As Halloween Hovers Near

Fall crop harvest across Missouri remains on a brisk pace, keeping ahead of historic averages.  The weekly USDA Crop Progress report indicates that corn harvest is 75 percent complete, while 61 percent of soybeans are out of the ground.  Two-thirds of the Bootheel’s cotton is harvested, while rice harvest is 93 percent complete.  While all crops are ahead of the five-year average, just soybeans and cotton are faring better than last year, as corn harvest is slightly behind the pace, while at this time a year ago, rice harvest was 96 percent complete.

While fall crops are quickly leaving the fields, winter wheat doesn’t seem to be replacing it fast enough.  Half of intended acres for the new season are planted, slightly better than a year ago and seven points better than the five-year average.  However, only a sixth of the crop has emerged, one point behind last year and six points off the five-year average.  Pasture conditions improved slightly, even as just 0.05″ of rain fell across Missouri on average last week.  Ten percent of pastures were rated good, compared to 63 percent still in poor or very poor shape.

Just a quarter of farmers report having adequate hay supplies, while 48 percent have adequate stock water supplies.  22 percent of Missouri soils have adequate moisture.  Temperatures were 1.7 degrees above normal at 57°F.  An average of 6.6 days were suitable for fieldwork.