Central Minnesota Farmers At Critical Point, Rain Needed Before It’s Too Late

(KNSI) – Farmers across Central Minnesota need rain now before it’s too late.

Almost all of Minnesota is experiencing moderate to severe drought this year.

University of Minnesota Regional Extension Educator in the St. Cloud Regional Office Jim Salfer says corn and soybeans are the largest crops in the region, and both are critical.

“When corn especially needs rain is just now when it’s starting to tassel. And for beans, it’ll be when the pods fill. So I think we’ve got adequate growth right now, but really over the next month is when we’ll need some moisture, and we’ll need a couple of inches if we’re going to have decent yields. If we get no rain moving forward, I think our yields will be pretty subpar.”

He says crops in sandy soil are getting stressed the most.

The drought is leading to high prices for feed and hay for livestock, especially for dairy and beef farmers.

Salfer says you can expect the drought to cause a 2% or 3% increase in prices at the grocery store on top of inflation.

He says it might be too late for many small grains.

He’s expecting small gran yields to be lower this year because of the drought.

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