Soybean harvest in Michigan is ahead of the 5-year average pace at 49% complete as of Monday’s USDA Crop Progress report. In this Pioneer field update, agronomist Mike Swoish talks about soybean yield in his area of southwest Michigan.
“For the most part, dryland yields are about average or better. It seems like this year yields are a little bit flip-flopped. Fields that typically are pretty good might be average or slightly below average and fields that are typically not some of our best fields maybe above average, especially for that field. Depending on when you got rains, of course, and if the field was irrigated, a lot of yield variability but, overall, I think farm averages are pretty much in line with normal or slightly above for most of the state.”
With some farmers wrapping up soybeans and moving on to corn, Swoish says, so far, we’ve had very few issues with stalk quality and standability.
“But, with the weather concerns, we’ve only got probably less than 50 GDUs forecasted or likely to accumulate for the rest of the year total, so we’re really not going to do much more drying at all. Maybe 1% or 2% depending on where you’re at right now. So, the concern is that the longer the corn sits in the field, we’re probably going to have some issues.”
Swoish says frost has hit every part of Michigan at this point and there was corn that had not yet reached black layer.
“If they were ¾ milk line, which I think most of them were, we’re not looking at a huge yield loss probably…could hurt stalk quality more than yield. Overall, I think most of the corn made it to at least ¾ milk line, so in terms of actual yield reductions, probably only a few percent.”
Hear the full interview with Pioneer agronomist Mike Swoish below.
