The lack of moisture in the Raccoon Valley Radio-listening area is causing stress on crops. 

According to the latest Crop Progress and Condition Report from the Iowa Department of Agriculture, farmers had an average of 6.4 suitable field days last week due to warmer and dry temperatures. 

The shortage of moisture hit northwest Iowa the hardest with the top soil rated at 70 percent short to very short and the subsoil rated at 84 percent short to very short.

Guthrie County Extension Field Agronomist Mike Witt says soybeans are going to be a lot shorter this year because of the hot temperatures. He points out he has not seen much disease pressure in corn but a lot of people are applying fungicide anyway. Witt gives some advice when using fungicide. 

“Different crops out there right now that don’t have a lot of disease that people are spraying. Also fungicide does not protect you from drought, a lot of people might think that.”

Additionally, pests continue to be a problem for crops, as Witt says the main pest they are seeing is rootworm in corn and Japanese beetles in soybeans.