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NWMO farmer assessing fields, replant needs after heavy rains

A farmer in northwest Missouri says he’s been evaluating fields to determine how much to replant following heavy rains.

“We had more than six inches for the entire month of April and in the last 48 hours, we’ve had another seven inches of rain.”

Ryan Meyerkorth, who farms in Atchison County, says sections of soybean fields are underwater, and it’s too soon to know the full extent of the damage.

He says the excessive moisture could have longer term impacts on crops in the area.

“The crops are kind of going backwards right now, but they are young and they have time to recover,” he says. “There definitely will be some replant in our area. So the tops have been taken off, I think, as far as big yields. I know it’s early, but it’s pretty tough to recover from being this saturated with everything from just fertilizer loss to just ponding. Right now, it’s kind of not looking the greatest up here.”

Meyerkorth also sells seed, and says he’s been getting calls about corn and soybeans.

“For myself, a few here and there, but across my territory, it’s like, it’s a lot, so it’s definitely, it’s a Missouri problem. There’s gonna be quite a bit of replanting.”

Meyerkorth tells Brownfield he’d like to see the weather pattern change, but more rain is in the forecast in the next few days.