Day 4

Started this morning in LaCrosse Wisconsin at 55 degrees.  This cold weather is getting old!  We traveled east to Sauk County south of Baraboo, WI.

Our first stop was at a seed corn field.  This was the first field that we have been in since Tuesday afternoon that we did not have to scrap mud off of our shoes.  It was moist in the area but not saturated like so many stops before.  The plant population was 35,000 ppa at growth stage V8.  We would give the field conditions a score of 10.  The soil corn yield rating was 136-155 BPA.  This field was very representative of the neighborhood and better than any of the seed fields we have been scouting on the trip.

Sauk County WI

Our second stop of the day was in Ogle County just south of Davis Junction, IL.  This corn on corn field looked awesome.  It was the tallest field on the trip.  It was at a growth stage between V8 and V9 and had a plant population of 35,000 ppa.  The field was rated as a 10 and was very representative for the area.  Again no mud to scrap off our shoes but the soil was moist.  The soil corn yield rating was 178 BPA.  Jim Prough is in the picture to give scale to the height of the corn.

Ogle County IL

Our final stop of the day was in LaSalle County just south of Wenona, IL.  The field of corn had a plant pop of  33,000 ppa and a growth stage between V8 and V9.  The condition score was a 9 and was representative of the area.  The soil corn yield rating was 160 BPA.  This field was similar to the other stops of the day in that it was not saturated. I am standing in the field to give scale to the corn.                             

LaSalle County IL

We wove through the countryside on our way back to Champaign County.  Our impression as we returned is that Illinois north of Route 136 is nearly bullet proof.  It is very good with potential high yields.  We know there are areas that are not as fortunate as the route of our trip, but we used this trip as a gauge to base marketing decisions.  Our gauge is that the crop is not complete but very good for the time being.  The crop is somewhat later than normal, but only a week or so behind (for the most part).  We did not see one field of prevent planted crops.  It appears that the crops in the western corn belt are planted.  Iowa (with the exception of Southeastern Iowa) is on pace for a big crop.  Nebraska looks good (although our sample was admittedly small and brief).  Minnesota is more variable but the fields are planted and crops look good.  Wisconsin is Wisconsin.  It was in the way between Minnesota and Illinois.  We took a sample to get an idea of their crop but we concede that we were not trying to gauge their crops for this study.  The WCB has enough moisture to withstand a reasonably prolonged dry period.  While soybeans were not the basis of the study, our observation is that they need sun, dry weather and heat to reach full yield potential.

After 1627 miles, my mind is fried, my butt is sore from riding in a vehicle, and I have put on 10 pounds, but I felt the trip was very beneficial.  Let us know your thoughts and questions.  So long for now!

Jim Squared