COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Ohio farmers may want to take some time this weekend to review information and recommendations regarding the severe delays in planting this spring.
"Planting delays are completely across the state of Ohio -- all areas are delayed in their planting this year. In past years, some parts of the state might be affected, but this year the entire state is way behind normal," said Glen Arnold, editor of the CORN (Crop Observation and Recommendation Network) newsletter.
According to the Ohio Agricultural Statistics Service, as of last weekend, just 11 percent of the corn crop had been planted; normally the figure is 80 percent. Just 4 percent of soybeans were in the ground, compared to the average of 54 percent. Jim Ramey, the service's statistician, said in a briefing at the Ohio Department of Agriculture on Thursday, "In the history of the Ohio Crop Report, corn planting has never been this far behind."
The CORN newsletter is written by specialists from Ohio State University Extension, the Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center (OARDC), and outside partners. It is normally sent out weekly during the growing season, but the specialists developed a special edition today. It's available online at http://corn.osu.edu.
"The weather forecast calls for improved conditions for planting next week, but today and over the weekend farmers still may have time to read the newsletter and get some information they might need," Arnold said. "Deadlines for crop insurance are coming up pretty quickly, and there are other decisions that will need to be made in short order."
The special edition starts with an extensive article, "Crop Insurance Preventive Plant Options."
"The insurance program is complicated and most of us -- we don't look at the fine details until we need it," Arnold said. "For many farmers, it may be the first time they've worked with preventive planting, so we wanted to get as much information in the newsletter as could. But we emphasize, over and over again, call your insurance person. He or she will be able to help you make decisions."
Other articles in the newsletter include:
- "New Decision Aid to Determine Late Planting Options"
- "Enterprise Budgets Provide Another Tool to Evaluate Your Planting Decisions"
- "Decision Resources and Tools for 2011 Late Planting"
- "More on Head Scab and Fungicides"
- "Optimizing the Profitability of Corn Planted in June"
- "Indiana Thoughts on Late-Planting of Soybean"
- "How Soon After the Sun Starts Shining Again Should You Make Hay?"
"Look over the information while the ground is still wet," Arnold said. "But we're all really hoping the weather changes and farmers are able to get moving in the state of Ohio."
OSU Extension and OARDC are the outreach and research arms of Ohio State University's College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences.
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