Planting season has been swift in Illinois, with the west-central region leading the way. Heading into Mother’s Day weekend, Bayer Technical Agronomist Lance Tarchionne shares that many area producers finished planting by May 1.
“A lot of producers were completely done with corn, beans, everything before the first of May, those who were being a little more patient, had a lot more acres to cover, had livestock enterprises, an off-farm job, or, didn’t have 24/7 to just plant, are wrapping up currently,” says Tarchionne. “The last four years, I believe we’ve been behind, we’ve been delayed, there were acres left to plant Mother’s Day weekend, which hasn’t turned out real well. The past several years, lots of replanting, lots of poor stands, as if someone was trying to tell us that we’re not supposed to be planting on Mother’s Day.”
Tarchionne adds that southern Illinois has seen wetter-than-normal conditions delaying the planting process.