Blog

Thin Lizzy predicted it in 1976. Actually, the boys and girls are back in town. Over the weekend, the first painted lady butterflies were spotted in Iowa. Why care about this beautiful butterfly? It seems like a distant memory, but remember the thistle caterpillar bonanza on soybean last summer? They are one in the same species.

Friday and Saturday night will have cold temperatures reach into northern Iowa and maybe even southern Iowa. Below is a National Weather Service low temperature prediction (https://digital.weather.gov) for Saturday, May 9. Notice that north of Interstate 80 has some risk potential for temperatures falling below freezing. Keep in mind is that dew point temperature are several degrees lower.

Last week provided another big window for planting and other field activities across the state. According to the May 4^th USDA Crop Progress Report, approximately 78% of the corn has been planted and 46% of the soybeans have been planted across the state. Check out what ISU Extension field agronomists are seeing and hearing around the state for field conditions and planting progress.   

Northwest Iowa

Clinic update

As the time for crop germination approaches, the staff of the Plant and Diagnostic Clinic (PIDC) want to reiterate that while the clinic is running at a reduced capacity, physical samples will still be accepted this season. Staff still request that interactions with the clinic occur primarily through emails that include pictures and other information, before submitting a sample.

Late last week, Dr. Justin Glisan, State Climatologist of Iowa for the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship, wrote some really interesting comments about the National Weather Service Climate Prediction Center monthly outlooks. We’ve copied some of the text directly from his tweets and asked him for additional thoughts on the topic of weather forecasts this time of year!

As far as monthly weather outlooks from the NWS CPC, two products are issued each month:

Planting occurred at a near record pace in much of Iowa due to lack of rain in late April. This string of dry weather also allowed most herbicide applications to be made in a timely fashion, but now there is concern about herbicide performance after prolonged time on the soil surface.

Black cutworm (BCW) and true armyworm (TAW) moths continue to be active in Iowa. Last week, our cooperators in southern Iowa reported 37 total TAW moths. April 24 seemed to be the date with the largest flights: 14 TAW moths were caught around the state on that day alone. BCW moths were more widespread in Iowa compared to previous weeks.

The past week provided a big window for fieldwork ranging from tillage and fertilizer applications to spraying and planting across the state. According to the April 26^th USDA Crop Progress Report, approximately 39% of the corn and 9% of the soybeans in the state of Iowa have been planted. ISU Extension field agronomists share what they are seeing and hearing around the state for field conditions and planting progress.  

Northwest Iowa

If you missed the live version, a recorded version of the April 22 “Stored grain handling and management webinar” is now available by going to this link: https://register.gotowebinar.com/recording/1109044800007797249.

Despite the cold weather last week (April 12-18), moths were active throughout Iowa. April 13 had the most reports. Our cooperators around the state reported a total of 24 black cutworm (BCW) and 12 true armyworm (TAW) moths on that day alone. Figures 1 and 2 show the total moth captures in each county from April 12 to April 18 for TAW and BCW, respectively.

Moth trapping in Iowa is underway. Each year, we monitor field crop pests to help inform scouting activities in Iowa. In 2020, our moth trapping network includes black cutworm (BCW) and true armyworm (TAW; Figure 1). Both of these pests are migratory, making it difficult to predict where populations will establish year to year.

Passage of the 2018 Farm Bill in December of 2018 and passage of Senate File 599 in Iowa have paved the road to the legalization of growing hemp in Iowa. The permitting process is currently open in Iowa. The application deadline for the 2020 outdoor growing season is May 15, 2020.  Listed below are some definitions, questions and answers, and resources that can assist you with your plans to raise hemp as a crop.  

The Forecasting and Assessment of Cropping Systems (FACTS) project is up and running with accurate, recent data to inform decision making for a variety of industry professionals. FACTS is an ongoing project developed to forecast and evaluate in real-time soil-crop dynamics at a field and regional scale. It uses weather, soil and crop information combined with machine learning to provide industry professionals the information they need to maximize yield and minimize economic impacts.

This week has been the start of planting for many in Iowa. After the recent cold spell, conditions are favorable to start fieldwork back up again. It’s likely a significant portion of crop ground in Iowa will get planted this week, with the majority of the weather forecast being supportive of field activities.

A few things to keep in mind as your operation moves through the rest of the week:

While the cooler and snowy weather may have limited field activities last week, farmers are getting back to the fields across the state this week, with many getting started on planting. Iowa State University Extension and Outreach field agronomists share reports on what they are seeing and hearing in their respected regions across the state with field conditions and planting progress.

North Central Iowa

With quite a bit of grain getting put into storage last fall that was wetter than normal, this could lead to some potential issues with quality, handling, and safety issues this spring and summer.

Farmers in Iowa have been experimenting with very early soybean planting dates, from late March to mid-April. Based on reviews of the yield data, there is not a consistent yield benefit to planting early as opposed to planting the first week of May. But one benefit of very early planting is that it extends the planting window, allowing farmers to take advantage of ideal soil conditions in April.

The monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) population east of the Rocky Mountains has declined for many reasons, but loss of milkweed (Asclepias spp.), its’ larval host plant, in the U.S. Midwest, is a contributing factor. To help increase the monarch population, an estimated 1.6 billion stems of milkweed weed to be established in this part of the country.

By Madelynn Connell and Emily Heaton 

Many people in the Midwest have recently experienced the bitter-cold temperatures brought on by arctic air falling into the mid-latitudes. While these temperatures can make people rather uncomfortable, they are also potentially dangerous to miscanthus in the field.

Vulnerability of Young Miscanthus

March into early April has been warm enough and dry enough to the point that soil conditions are good for planting. The calendar date is a bit early; after all the crop insurance, replanting is April 11. Regardless, many are pondering if they should be planting corn already, and some maybe already have.