It might be time to invest in center pivots or improve soil quality if drought conditions continue to worsen in Michigan, ag leaders say.
This week USDA announced parts of Branch, Cass, St. Joseph, and Hillsdale counties in ‘severe’ drought, along with eight others that crossed into that category last week.
Crop growth is now falling behind due to a lack of rain, according to the most recent crop progress report from USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service, with corn, soybean, barley, and wheat conditions all suffering due to lack of precipitation.
Only 28% of corn, 23% of soybeans, and 31% of winter wheat were reported as “good” or “excellent” last week, with each increasing the numbers in “poor” condition.
Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development Director Tim Boring called the weather concerning and posing a “unique set of challenges.”
“The severity of the drought setting on this time of the year is more concerning to me than what we get later on with in the season,” said Boring, a sixth-generation Stockbridge farmer. “Our corn and soybean conditions in Michigan are the worst that USDA is tracking on any of the major states that they published numbers on. We’re in the 20s for good and excellent ratings. When we start from a point like that, it's tough to come back from this.”
Boring’s concerns spread to conservation practices, which might be affected by the weather.
“One of my chief concerns about this is the growers who are getting most aggressive about implementing conservation practices this spring — no-till, cover crops — are some of the hardest hit fields out there today,” he told Michigan Farm News.
“Long term, the way we address these increasingly frequent drought conditions is increasing soil quality, its water holding capacity, and its water infiltration. When storms come through — like they did through Illinois on Thursday — and we get an inch of rain, but it comes in 15 minutes, we need to make sure we're capturing that.”
Source: michiganfarmnews.com
Photo Credit: gettyimages-neenawat555
Categories: Michigan, Weather