Ron Haase farms on the western side of Iroquois County near La Hogue with his brother David.  They are the fourth-generation farmers and the third generation at his location. They have been planting all corn on their farms; the last soybeans planted were in 2003. Ron will be providing a cropwatch report each week, detailing what’s happening in his area as far as crop development.

It rained 0.1-0.2 in. on May 2 and then anywhere from a sprinkle to 0.1 in. on May 5.  A few area fields still have surface water that needs to drain off yet.  A few planters were in the field planting corn on May 4 and May 5 before the evening shower.  Less than 5% of the corn in this area has been planted.  We have not started planting at our farm yet.  The cool soils have been slow to dry out enough to allow for fieldwork.  The local closing bids for May 5 were $6.90 for nearby corn, $6.17 for new-crop corn, $13.10 for nearby soybeans and $12.72 for new crop soybeans.