Dry weather for most of the week allowed many Iowa farmers to make good progress with harvest during the week ending Nov. 5, according to the USDA, National Agricultural Statistics Service. Statewide there were 5.7 days suitable for fieldwork. Farmers in west central Iowa had 6.5 days suitable. A wide variety of activities were performed during the week, including drying and hauling grain, baling corn stalks, tillage, and applying manure and fertilizers.
Topsoil moisture levels statewide rated 3 percent very short, 8 percent short, 83 percent adequate and 6 percent surplus. Levels in west central Iowa rated 5 percent short, 88 percent adequate and 7 percent surplus.
Subsoil moisture levels statewide rated 6 percent very short, 17 percent short, 72 percent adequate and 5 percent surplus. Levels in west central Iowa were 1 percent very short, 8 percent short, 85 percent adequate and 6 percent surplus.
Sixty-seven percent of the corn for grain crop has been harvested, nine days behind the 5-year average. Moisture content of corn being harvested for grain averaged 17 percent. Farmers in all nine Iowa districts have completed harvest of more than half of their corn for grain crop with southeast Iowa farmers leading the way with 77 percent harvested.
Ninety-two percent of the soybean crop has been harvested, three days behind last year and six days behind average.
Cattle and calves continue to feed on stover with limited amounts of hay being fed. Feedlots have started to dry out.
Iowa preliminary weather summary by Harry Hillaker, state climatologist, Iowa Department of Agriculture & Land Stewardship – It was a cold week with precipitation totals below normal statewide.
Temperatures were well below normal for the first one-half of the week before moderating to near normal by the weekend. A series of light precipitation events crossed the state, each mainly impacting northern and eastern Iowa, on Sunday afternoon and evening (Oct. 29), Monday, Wednesday, Friday night into Saturday morning and finally on Sunday morning, Nov. 5. Weekly precipitation totals varied from only sprinkles over about the southwest one-quarter of the state to 0.39 inches at Estherville. The statewide average precipitation was 0.10 inches while normal for the week is 0.55 inches.
Daytime high temperatures were mostly in the 40s throughout the week, except on Sunday, Oct. 29, when temperatures briefly climbed into the 60s over the far southwest where Sidney reached 68 degrees. The most widespread cold came on Tuesday morning when Sheldon and Spencer recorded lows of 14 degrees. Temperatures for the week as a whole averaged 6.1 degrees below normal.
