Drought worries enter the crop season

Dry conditions have caused early-season concern for farmers across the Midwest.

After many farmers were able to plant in good conditions, the rains have been few and far between, which could take the top off yield estimates despite the ability to get timely fertilizer applications in.

“If we hit the V5 or V6 growing stage, we are starting to determine yield,” said Eric Wilson, an Illinois agronomist with Wyffels Hybrids.

One aspect of the dry conditions is the impact of early-season herbicide applications not being activated.

“If you don’t have good, ideal growing conditions for those crops to metabolize that stuff in a timely fashion, you can get a little crop injury,” Wilson said. “It can make corn look a little sick, a little yellow, for the time being.”

In this Mesonet Weather Report, Oklahoma state climatologist Gary McManus explains how drought conditions are expanding across the state, while new rain chances may offer some relief. Get the latest Oklahoma weather outlook, drought updat