Consistency lost

?This year, there will be ?haves? and ?have nots,?? said Iowa State University field agronomist Virgil Schmitt.

Schmitt was referring to the high variability in corn yields that have been reported in the state. Most of the Midwest was in a drought over the summer. Some farms received rain while others barely got a drop. Schmitt said he is noticing a wide range of yields in his district in eastern Iowa.

The land near Columbus Junction and Wapello is producing very well, he said. He?s heard of farmers who have gotten 240 bushels an acre. At the same time, he?s hearing a lot of farmers tell him they?re struggling to get even 100 bushels an acre, particularly those in the southeast corner of Iowa and those in the far north near Dubuque.

?This is where very subtle differences in soil and their water-holding capacity come into play,? he said. ?Farms in the south, near Lee County, are not too good, but I talked to a guy from there who got 230 bushels an acre. He got under the clouds at the right time.?

He said people with very low yields will rely on crop insurance, and that crop insurance is going to be better than in the past, but still not competitive with the income some farmers are making on their high yields.

Schmitt said he expects the yield in Washington County to be extremely variable as well. He said the county did not receive as much rain as the counties to the east did, but it also got some rain in mid-June that missed most of the state.

Schmitt estimated that about 10 percent of the corn crop was harvested in his district, which is primarily along the Mississippi River. He said the rest of the state is probably just over that, since his district was a little slower in getting into the fields since it received more rain than other districts.

He said there are usually a few farmers who spend a couple of hours a day harvesting in late September, just to make sure all their machinery is working. Those farmers were out two weeks earlier than usual this year. He said farmers across the state have really started to get serious about harvesting in the past week.

One of the reasons farmers haven?t gotten out really fast is they?re waiting for Mother Nature to dry the grain. Schmitt talked with a man this morning who got 150 bushels per acre with a moisture content of 16 percent.

?You figure 15 percent is ideal moisture for the market,? he said. ?If it?s below that, you?ve lost water you could have sold as corn. If it?s above that, you?ll be penalized.?

Very few rain clouds visited the state in July but August and September have seen closer to average rainfalls, although both months have been below average. According to the National Weather Service, Iowa City reported 4 inches of rain in August, one-half inch below normal. Normal rainfall for Iowa City thus far in September is 2.7 inches, and it has received 2.4 inches.

The August rains were a godsend to the beans, which depend on healthy rains that month to fill out their pods. Schmitt said only a small portion of beans have been harvested so far, but he?s heard mostly good things about the yield. One farmer he talked to was getting nearly 60 bushels an acre. He expects a lot of farmers to yield in the high 50s.

Iowa Farm Bureau spokesman Dirck Steimel said in a press release Friday that farmers are reporting wide variation in yields even within the same field. Steimel said it?s not just crop farmers who are on the edge, either.

?Iowa livestock farmers are coming to grips with what the hot, dry summer will mean for their animals as the long winter approaches,? he said. ?Their pastures and ponds have dried up and feed supplies are tight. Many farmers are hauling water to livestock and that?s not a cost-effective option when margins are so thin.?

With the high prices, people who did not lock in feed costs last spring, are now buying feed on market. Those people are in a world of hurt.?

Schmitt agreed, noting that the farmers who locked in their feed prices at the beginning of the year will do fine, but those who are just now buying feed will be in trouble.