Some expect long harvest

STANFORD – With three different plantings of corn last spring, this will likely be a long fall for some growers.

A few were lucky enough to plant their corn in April, but much of the crop went into the ground during May and June.

“It will be a very interesting fall and probably quite long this year,” said Rodney Weinzierl, executive director of Illinois Corn who also farms near Stanford in McLean County.

Weinzierl has all June planted corn this year and has not had that since the wet year of 2009 when he finished harvest prior to Thanksgiving. He expects a similar situation this fall.

During the recent Farm Progress Show, Weinzierl displayed his father’s old grain truck which was purchased from a neighbor in 1959. He recalls hauling corn to town in the truck when he was in high school during the late 1970s. The family stored the truck and it is in very good condition.

“We had it refurbished about six or seven years ago and brought it out to the Farm Progress Show to talk a little bit about what farming was like 50 years ago and what it’s like today.”

The Illinois Corn display area at this year’s Farm Progress Show included many of the partners the organization works with including Illinois Pork, Illinois Beef, American Lung Association and Soil Health Partnership.