Climate

Early season drought issues across Southern Brazil (Mato Grosso Do Sul, Parana, and Rio Grande do Sul) robbed Brazil of a record setting soybean crop for the 2021-22 growing season. Stagnant high-pressure plus a lack of cold fronts moving north out of Argentina led to about 40% of Southern Brazil’s soybean growing area receiving less than 60% of normal rainfall through late January.

The Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) Grasslands signup helps Illinois farmers and landowners protect grassland, including rangeland, and pastureland and others, while maintaining the areas as working grazing lands. Protecting grasslands contributes positively to the economy of many regions across the state, promotes biodiversity of plant and animal populations, and also results in carbon sequestration benefits. USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) has updated the Grassland signup to a minimum rental rate of $15 per acre, benefitting 1,300 counties. The signup is competitive, and FSA will provide annual rental payments for land devoted to conservation purposes. “Producers can enroll their working [...]

To view current U.S. drought conditions, check out the Current U.S. Drought Monitor Conditions for Illinois.  The U.S. Drought Monitor (USDM) is updated each Thursday to show the location and intensity of drought across the country. The map shows drought conditions across Illinois using a five-category system, from Abnormally Dry (D0) conditions to Exceptional Drought (D4). The USDM is a joint effort of the National Drought Mitigation Center, USDA, and NOAA. Learn more. The following state-specific drought impacts were compiled by the National Drought Mitigation Center. While these impacts are not exhaustive, they can help provide a clearer picture [...]

2020 marked the third consecutive year with statewide total annual precipitation above the long-term average, and it was the eighth wetter than average calendar year since 2011. However, the statewide totals do not paint a complete picture of current moisture conditions around the state. While the wet trend continued throughout the year in southern Illinois and parts of northern Illinois, drought developed and has persisted in central Illinois. Here I will summarize current moisture conditions and both temperature and precipitation outlooks through spring. Current Conditions Virtually every part of Illinois was wetter than average through the first half of [...]

July is an interesting month for soybean growers. The crop has been planted and most of the post-emergence herbicide applications have been completed. With the exception of potential fungicide application, most of the factors that are within the farmer’s control are past. Weather will be the biggest factor in determining the size of the soybean crop. To understand the role that weather plays in determining yield, I spoke with Dr. Emerson Nafziger from the University of Illinois. Dr. Nafziger points out that soybean yield potential is determined in July and yield is created in August. Setting Pods The number [...]

Illinois Sustainable Ag Partnership (ISAP) is hosting a risk management webinar series this summer. Recaps of the presentations and a link to the full presentations will be provided here after each webinar. The June 18 webinar focused on climate risk and how farmers can adapt. Eric Snodgrass, Principal Atmospheric Scientist at Nutrien Ag Solutions, started by presenting data on the climate changes Illinois farmers have experienced over the past 30 years. Most farmers can anecdotally support that we are getting precipitation differently, i.e., rain events have been heavier and dry periods longer. But is the distribution around the state [...]