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Missouri farmers report decent corn yields as harvest advances

Missouri farmers say the corn crop is decent as harvest continues, and progress varies across the state.

In northwest Missouri, Ryan Meyerkorth tells Brownfield it’s been a slow start due to the late season dry down, but the corn is coming out above expectations.   

“We had a wet spring, so we were kind of anticipating a little bit of down year in yield, but right now we’re pleasantly surprised,” says Meyerkorth.

In central Missouri, Jordan Bredehoeft tells Brownfield harvest is well underway. He says the good spots are really good, and the bad spots are dragging down the yield.

“The field we’re harvesting right now, in particular, is pretty good and it’s yielding around 220 to 230 bushels/acre,” says Bredehoeft. “I’m very happy with it. We’ve been in some other fields where there’s not as good of dirt, a little bit different planting date into April and we’ve seen anywhere from 170 to 205 bushels/acre on those fields.”

Bredehoeft says the extremely wet conditions earlier in the growing season didn’t allow some of the corn roots to establish.

In southeast Missouri, Aaron Porter recently told Brownfield corn harvest has wrapped up and it was an average crop.

The USDA says Missouri’s corn harvest is 23 percent complete, still ahead of average with conditions rated 65 percent good to excellent. Soybean harvest is three percent complete in Missouri, with crop conditions rated 57 percent good to excellent.

Soybean harvest is underway in the Bootheel, beginning in parts of central Missouri, and harvest in northwest Missouri growers could still be several weeks away.

Rain in the forecast for parts of Missouri this week will likely delay some harvest progress.

Hear Brownfield’s interview with Ryan Meyerkorth.

Hear Brownfield’s interview with Jordan Bredehoeft.