Thousands of Corn Acres Left To Harvest In North Dakota
Corn Still in the Field 011720
USDA says eight percent of corn and two percent of soybeans still need to be harvested in the country.
The weather does not help and continues to be a focus in the Northern Plains. Farmers in North Dakota saw dangerously low temperatures over the weekend. It’s one problem after the next as the state’s farmers try to harvest standing corn.
Chase Dewitz, a farmer from Sterling, North Dakota, is one farmer who still has to harvest corn. He wants to get his entire corn crop harvested before spring. Even though he’s not harvesting today, Dewitz hopes to pick up again in the combine when temperatures climb higher.
“It’s -8 standing here right now,” says Dewitz. “I mean, that’s a little bit of a shock to the system but at least the sun is shining.”
Dewitz isn’t the only one. As of December 31, USDA says just 48 percent of the state’s corn has been harvested. AgDay crews saw standing corn along I-94 near Sterling. They also saw it as far North as Minot, North Dakota.
“The corn is a big issue,” says Linda Rudolph, AVP Lending for Choice Bank in Steele, North Dakota. “One [client] told me he had 900 acres [left to harvest]. Someone told me they had 2,000 acres. That’s a big deal. There will be prevent plant next year.”
Dewitz says the moisture content for his corn is running at roughly 21 percent for his corn. It’s a shame since he says the yield is average but test weights and moisture content bring profits down.
”We have so much time and money invested in this corn right now, by the time we take our test weight discounts, we're under water on it,” says Dewitz.
Luckily, he has a dryer. However, other farmers don't in the state.
“If you took a 50 mile radius of where we’re at, I bet I could count on both hands how many guys have dryers, very few operations do,” says Dewitz.
