Crops looking 'really good' near Streator

STREATOR – Crops don’t look too bad on the farm of Jay Whalen near Streator was he missed the recent storms with strong winds and excessive rain.

Following a dry period in June, Whalen has received just the right amount of rain so far in July.

“When other people were getting big rains, we had eight tenths or three tenths,” Whalen told The Central Illinois Farm Network. “Our largest amount was 2.2 inches at one time.”

Whalen can’t complain as he is at over four inches for the month so far. The majority of his corn has pollinated, except for the later planted corn, and looks really good.

“The bean rows just filled in this last week and are looking really good,” Whalen said.

The seed specialist with ProHarvest Seeds reminds farmers of company plots available for viewing at his home and at the company’s Ashkum location. Due to COVID-19, ProHarvest will not hold the usual field days this year. The full product line will still be displayed to customers.

“On the corn side, we’ve got a 108-day that’s looking good, we’ve got a 111-day and the one that’s looking the best is our 113-day 8324 and it’s going to have a wonderful year.”

ProHarvest has really ramped-up Enlist soybeans to meet future needs of growers. In fact, Whalen has planted all Enlist on his farm.

An early order special is underway for ProHarvest cereal rye cover crops, which ends July 31. Whalen growers cover crops on every one of his acres and they are keeping weeds, such as water hemp, at bay. Whalen put clover out in his beans on July 5 to give it more time to get established in the field.

“The cover crop orders have been really rolling in here and it looks like it’s going to be another stellar year for cover crops.”

For more information on the various maturities and traits of corn and soybeans, visit the ProHarvest website at www.proharvestseeds.com or contact Whalen directly at 815-712-8246.