April has come and gone, and Vermilion County farmers, not to mention Illinois farmers, are well ahead of the game compared to last year. The Vermilion County Farm Bureau’s Tom Fricke says for the last Sunday in April, farmers statewide were done with about 40 percent of corn and soybean planting compared to only six percent last year. The average would be right about 29 percent. Yes, it seemed rain was always around towards the end of April. But earlier in April there was a long stretch of wonderful weather. And as Fricke points out, the rain that slowed everything down last year was more wide spread.
Audio PlayerAUDIO: Some of the rains we’ve had this spring haven’t necessarily been statewide. There’s been rains that came up from the south and just hit the eastern side of the state. There’s been rains that have just hit the northwest part of the state. And so, the moisture that slowed fieldwork down hasn’t necessarily been statewide, it’s been in regional pockets. And so, when you look at the statewide numbers, I think that’s what’s pushing some of that.
Fricke says he’s talked to some farmers waiting to finish corn planting who have already finished soybeans; which has been the trend for the last couple of years.
Audio PlayerAUDIO: As long as you can get the soybeans past any early frost, the earlier beans have done better yield wise at the end of the year because they aren’t trying to flower and fill the pods in the hottest days of August. They’ve got that done before that.
As for the recent decision by the EPA to allow the sale of E15 fuel in the summer this year, Fricke says it’s always great to have the need for more corn-produced ethanol. But he also says the key right now is having E-15 available at more gas stations, as it needs a separate gas pump and a separate fueling system. E15 fuel works in most vehicles on the road, except for much older ones.
