Missouri will be a major player in what could be a record fall harvest for U.S. farmers. Jim Stuever, who farms in the southeasthttps://www.missourinet.com/wp-admin/post.php?post=101112&action=edit#edit_timestamp Missouri town of Dexter, started later than he wanted to.

Corn is loaded onto a truck, (courtesy; Missouri Department of Agriculture, Corinne Mallinckrodt)

Corn is loaded onto a truck, (courtesy; Missouri Department of Agriculture, Corinne Mallinckrodt)

“We wanted to start the last week of August. It rained for about ten to fourteen days there at the last of August. It kind of held us out of the field for a while,” says Stuever.

Stuever, whose crops are irrigated, says a wet spring and a dry spell during the summer caused some problems for corn. But, overall, he says yields are good.

“Some would give it a pretty wide range of 150-210. The big area it falls into just depending on fields, how well the irrigation is, the weather and how Mother Nature rains hit it,” says Stuever.

Some northwest Missouri farmers haven’t started harvesting their crops, including Missouri Farm Bureau President Blake Hurst. Hurst, who lives in Tarkio, says some of his neighbors in Atchison County have started harvesting corn.

“I’m hearing moisture of 20-21. That’s typically a little wetter than we’d like to start, but we’re getting close. We’re excited about it,” says Hurst.

The Missouri Ag Statistics office of the USDA says, as of Sunday, 25% of Missouri’s corn was harvested, similar to last year but below the average. Corn maturity at 82% is well ahead of last year.

Soybeans turning color reached 55%, ahead of the average. Soybeans dropping leaves progressed to 21%.

Cotton bolls opening reached 51%, compared to 49 % for the 5-year average. Sorghum harvest was 8% complete.