Kansas corn harvest is off to a slow start

KANSAS (KSNT) – Corn harvest season has started in Kansas, but the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) reports that just 2% of corn has been harvested, down 11% compared to this time last year.

Despite a record corn crop predicted this year, the harvest is off to a slow start, per a USDA report on Sept. 8. Most of the corn in the state is harvested in September and October, but harvest time can differ depending on when it was planted, soil/weather conditions and disease.

This year’s harvest is slowed down by the recent rains and cooler than usual weather. Cool and wet weather will delay the grain drying process and could result in rots and mycotoxins. Conditions like these resulted in historically slow harvests like in 2019 and 2009 that had the harvest only 84% complete by late November.

“Wet conditions lately may have delayed harvesting operations in the field due to muddy conditions, so the crop may actually be ready for harvest, but too wet to get equipment into the field.

Some acres in the state may have been planted later than normal, thus delaying maturity.

Some areas of the state have had less than normal heat unit accumulation this growing season, which is a key driver in the growth and development of corn. These cooler than normal temperatures have slowed development. This would have been especially true of the very unseasonably cool temperatures we saw several weeks ago.”
Lukas Haag, Agronomist-in-Charge and Associate Professor at K-State Southwest Research-Extension Center

The corn condition itself looks to be very good, with 88% of it ranging from fair-excellent while only 15% is rated poor-very poor, according to the USDA. However, farmers are expecting an average loss of $0.85 per bushel due to the predicted yield.

“In many areas of the state yields look to be exceptional,” Haag said. “However there is a lot of grain still in storage, logistics could become a challenge as we run out of places to put this fall’s crop. There will be significant amounts of grain placed into ground piles.”

Harvest rates going forward are going to be driven by weather conditions. Thankfully, the long term outlook appears to be calling for dry and hot weather, which should allow for normal, or even historic harvest rates in the near future.

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