The extreme heat is putting pressure on the pollination period of crops in central Iowa. 

ISU Extension and Outreach Field Agronomist Angie Rieck-Hinz says that the corn crop is anywhere between the stage of R1 and R3 also known as the milk stage. She says that any corn crop that has pollinated has looked good, but there is a concern.  

“I think the big concern going into the heat this week will be the corn that’s currently pollinating. If we get really, really hot and dry, that can impact pollination and we can not not pollinate all the kernels on the cob or even the things that are already pollinated may not continue to fill out to the tip. So I think that’s a concern going into this week.”

Rieck-Hinz says that the soybean crops are sitting in the growth stage of R3 and R4 which is when the crop is starting to pod. She tells Raccoon Valley Radio that soybeans are in good shape with little to no insect pressure. 

“Very few reports of soybean aphids. Very few reports of anything else happening in soybeans. The Japanese beetles were feeding on the edges of the fields, and they’re pretty much past their prime now for feeding. Grasshoppers continue to increase in population, and we would expect that this time of year as it gets a little warmer and drier.”

According to the latest Crop Progress and Condition Report from the Iowa Department of Agriculture, farmers had 6.3 suitable fieldwork days last week. Most of the field has been cutting hay and harvesting oats.