Tim Webster and Steve Crothers share their cropping plans, telling Ken Ferrie they hope to bounce back this season from record low rainfall and extreme heat in 2025.

A Farmer’s Keeper survey of 4,000 farmers shows 20% are cutting corn acres as record fertilizer prices and supply gaps force last-minute shifts toward soybeans and other crops to protect profitability.

Reaching levels rarely seen since 2013, historic dryness grips the eastern Corn Belt, the Southeast and into the western Plains. With 68% of winter wheat in drought, producers face potential abandonment.

Illinois grower Stephen Butz is uber-focused this season on removing the hidden barriers that have kept his bean crops from reaching their true potential.

In a candid conversation with Farm Journal, USDA Deputy Secretary Stephen Vaden says USDA’s message to fertilizer companies is simple: “Be part of the solution, don’t be part of the problem.”

Temple Rhodes explains how moving away from front-loaded fertilizer use to what he calls a “layered, systematic approach” — using nitrogen, phosphorus and biologicals — is helping him build corn yields despite increased regulatory demands.