With how hot and dry the summer has been, crops have been affected in Iowa.

Iowa State University Extension Field Agronomist Mike Witt says that the long stretches of heat, especially the most recent one, have helped accelerate the drying process of field crops, especially corn. He tells Raccoon Valley Radio what he’s heard reports of.

“A lot of people have been surprised with how dry their soybeans have been. So there’s a lot of soybeans that are coming out across the area, there is also a lot of corn that people have started to combine as well. I would say for soybeans, we’re looking at around 40-percent of those soybeans have been taken out. And with corn, it’s going to be less than that. But what individuals are doing is, if some of those fields are dropping ears, or if they’re an earlier maturity corn, and they’re starting to have some stalk degradation, farmers are out there getting those out of the field.”

Witt mentions that with cooler temperatures making their way into the area, the drying process will slow down. He adds that most of what’s currently being harvested is either dry enough, or just about dry enough, that many farmers are already storing it in their own bins, or taking it to local cooperatives for storage.