Hot Weather Hindering Corn Pollination in Indiana

The heat is taking its toll on Indiana corn, as some corn is standing as high a 8 ft. in the fields, while other is only two feet tall, according to some Indiana farmers.

That could result in mixed pollination as the season goes on.

According to the USDA, the condition rating on the corn crop in Indiana has dropped for the last couple of weeks, confirming the concerns.

Heavy moisture in the spring has also contributed to the heat stress a number of farmers in Indiana are experiencing with their corn. The heavy moisture resulted in shallow rooted plants.

Slow Start to Kansas Corn

Kansas Corn Crop

The Kansas corn crop has been doing pretty good so far this year even though there was an very late planting, but its late start has made the crop especially vulnerable to damage.

If everything goes right, Kansas farmers plant their corn by the first week in April. But rain kept farmers out of fields at the usual planting time, so a lot of of the state's corn was planted in late May and early June.

What that means is the crop will be pollinating during the hot, dry Kansas summer months. Another potential problem is an early freeze before the corn is ready for harvest could be devastating.

This week's crop condition report showed 68 percent of the corn in good to excellent condition, with 25 percent rated as fair. Only 7 percent of the crop got a poor to very poor rating.

Kansas farmers put 3.8 million acres into corn this season, compared to 3.85 million acres a year earlier.

Acroos the nation, the corn acreage of 87 million acres was up 1 percent from 2008. It was the second largest planted corn acreage since 1946, behind 2007, which set the record.

But some analysts remain nervous at the crop's late planting dates in major growing regions.

When the Agriculture Department came out with its acreage report last week the numbers of corn acres were higher than expected, said Mike Woolverton, grain marketing economist at Kansas State University. The market had anticipated a reduction in acreage from a year ago.

"The acres are there," he said. "But - and here's the kicker - and that is that the corn was planted late. Very late, some of it, and it may not develop to full maturity before frost. So we may end up with a short corn crop this year."

Kansas Corn Crop

Corn Futures Increase from News on Initial Government Injection of Capital into Banks

The emotional boost given by the announced plan of the U.S. government to take $250 billion of the $700 billion bailout and inject it into "healthy" U.S. banks, has caused many commodities to rise over the last couple days, but that will be short lived.

For corn, it partook in the overall boost by increasing by 6.75 cents for December delivery to reach $4.18 a bushel on the Chicago Board of Trade. Earlier in the day it was higher at $4.29 a bushel.

So far this year corn maturity has dropped significantly from last year, as a recent report from the USDA says, where as of October 5 it was only as 73 percent maturity, in contrast to last year during the same period where it was at 95 percent. Later today the U.S. Department of Agriculture will release their weekly crop report.

CBOT Corn Futures Surpass $6 First Time in Almost Three Weeks

For the first time in about three weeks, corn futures on the Chicago Board of Trade surged past the $6 mark, as the U.S. dollar weakens on stronger oil prices and geo-political concerns.

Nearby September corn on the CBOT increased by 22 1/2 cents to $5.97 3/4, and most-active December gained 22 1/2 cents to end at $6.17 1/2 a bushel.

One other factor in the price of corn futures is Midwest rain may not be enough to pull corn through to a strong harvest. It's also slightly possible that later maturity levels could make corn vulnerable to frost further on in the season.

Kernals now filling out may not be helped by the forecasted wet weather over the next 7-10 days in the midwest.

Corn exports also fell far below the projected 850,000 to 1.4 million tons looked for; only 691,500 metric tons sold the week ending August 14.

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, 196,600 metric tons were sold for 2007-08, while 494,900 tons were sold for 2008-09.

Corn Futures Drop to Lowest Level in Four Months

For the fourth straight session corn futures fell, dropping as low as $5.26 earlier in the day, the lowest level in four months on the CBOT.

The major driver of the drop is the cooling weather, as pollination will increase in response to cooler weather conditions, increasing corn yields. This helps to address the opposite concerns that hot weather would cause corn prices to surge through an even lower pollination rate.

"A forecast for relatively cooler weather this week will be beneficial for" corn's pollination, said Elaine Kub, a grain analyst at commodities research firm DTN.

Even so, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, as of August 3, pollination of corn was down from the five-year average of 91 percent, with 83 percent pollinating at this time. The cooler weather will increase that percentage, and probably bring it closer in line with past performance.

Another factor is the strengthening U.S. dollar, which has brought downward pressure on commodities in general, including corn.

Corn Futures Increase on Weather Concerns, Export Demand

Noting that higher temperatures could cause problems in the corn yield, the price of corn futures increased today, closing up by 12 cents to $5.94 a bushel. December corn also increased by a little over 12 cents, finishing the session at $6.13 1/2.

The concern is over how well the corn pollinates during this crucial time, as too warm weather could hamper the yield results.

Even with the strong response of buyers, the warm weather isn't anticipated to stay too long, and hopefully will just be a temporary blip.

Drew Lerner, an agricultural meteorologist at World Weather Inc. said, "We shouldn't have more than just a few days of stressful conditions in the eastern part of the corn belt."

Other factors were concerns by end-users that other variables like a late growing season, early frost and increased export demands could impact them down the road, so they wanted to lock inventory in so they don't lose out later in the year.