Growing season challenges put damper on farmer’s yield expectations

News

While the 2019 growing season was difficult, a central Illinois farmer says 2020 brought its own set yield dropping challenges.

Brownfield’s Rhiannon Branch joined fifth generation farmer Elliott Uphoff in the semi hauling soybeans in Findlay Tuesday. He says early season rains and later season drought decreased the high yield potential he saw heading into the growing season.

“We thought maybe 65 bushels per acre was going to be our worst field, but it looks like if we have any beans go over 70 we are going to be lucky. I think we are still going to have an average bean crop, but the potential was there for much better than average.”

But with the warm, dry forecast he expects to be completely done with their 2100 acres of corn and soybeans by the end of the month.

“Beans we are just getting a good start on this week and by the end of the week we will be well over half done. We have a really good week of cutting beans ahead of us and I think we have a chance to finish all of our beans by the end of this week or beginning of next week if they are all ready in time.”

Uphoff is the District 10 Director for the Illinois Soybean Association.