Crop Progress Report

July 9, 2007

Farmers See Hot and Dry Conditions

Irrigation season has started the past two weeks due to the hot and dry conditions. According to USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service, Nebraska Field Office, temperatures ranged from a high of 103 degrees in Scottsbluff to a low of 56 degrees in McCook. The Southwest and South Central Districts were the only parts of the state to see measurable precipitation which averaged a half inch.

The amount of corn silked was 27 percent which is ahead of last year’s 24 and the 14 average. Corn conditions were rated 1 percent very poor, 2 poor, 17 fair, 55 good, and 25 excellent. This is above last year’s 61 percent good or excellent rating. Irrigated fields rated 90 percent good or excellent and dryland fields rated 67 percent. Both of these are above last year.

The following pictures are taken by FFA Chapters across the state representing each of the eight districts. They show the crop progress in each area and illustrate the differences in progress throughout the state of Nebraska.

During the past two weeks, tassels have developed in many of the corn fields across the state. A lot of tassels were seen before the Fourth of July which is early in comparison to most years. Tassels develop to pollinate the corn. Once the corn plant matures and begins to produce the ears, the pollen from the tassels fall on the silks to produce the corn kernels.

These pictures came from the following FFA Chapters: Top Left- Heartland FFA Chapter, Top Right- Sutton FFA Chapter; and Bottom Center- Cedar Rapids FFA Chapter.

The following pictures illustrate the different methods of irrigation used in Nebraska.

This is a picture of a dryland field. A dryland field does not receive any supplemental water from irrigation. The only water that the crop gets comes from the rain. This photo was taken by the Norris FFA Chapter in a field near Firth.

The following irrigation method is known as gravity irrigation. Irrigation pipe is laid at one end of the field and the water is released into the furrows and carried to the other end. Gates are placed on the pipe so the farmer can control which rows are receiving water. These pictures came from a farm north of Holdrege.

The fields in the following pictures use pivot irrigation. The pivot is a form of overhead irrigation where water is released from sprinklers and the pivot moves in a circular pattern to cover the entire field. These pictures were submitted by the Loup City FFA Chapter.

• Nebraska is the number one irrigated corn state with over 84,000 wells and is home to every major center pivot manufacturer.
• On average, 62% of the corn acres farmed in Nebraska are irrigated.
• An estimated 2 billion acre feet (more than 5 times the water of Lake Erie) of easily accessible ground water from the Ogallala Aquifer lies below 59% of Nebraska’s land surface.