"Another week with rain."

That’s been the story of the 2018 growing season in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic. In Maryland, it’s taking a toll on soybean quality.

"Soybeans are really starting to deteriorate in quality," says Matt Morris of Frederick County, who reported on crops for the Oct. 7 Crop Progress Report. "Many beans are rotten and sprouting. None in the county have been harvested yet."

Charles Schuster, reporting from neighboring Howard and Montgomery counties, says soybeans are starting to develop diseases.

"Soybean conditions changed greatly since the last report," he says. "Most are found with mold and fungus, many affected by Phomopsis blight, and being very soft or rotting. Other disease issues are causing a quality issue, which may make them difficult to sell or use."

According to Iowa State University, Phomopsis fungi can cause pod and stem blight in soybeans. It’s mostly a concern for famers who grow soybean seed as it has little effect on crop yield. The fungi accumulate in crop residue and can become a problem just before harvest when it’s wet and humid.

Iowa State recommends rotating crops to reduce survival of the fungi in residue or tiling fields to promote decay of residue.

Soybean quality is also an issue in Pennsylvania.

"Soybeans are yielding well; however, many have 5% to 10% shriveled, moldy or purple-stained beans," says Jeff Graybill, a Crop Progress Report field reporter in Lancaster County.

STAINED SOYBEANS: Soybeans harvested at the Southeast Pennsylvania Agricultural Research and Extension Center in Manheim, Pa., are showing signs of purple seed stain and are also shriveled by Phomopsis. According to Alyssa Collins, the center’s director, Phomopsis can cause quality issues as well as test weights to drop.

New York farmers are dealing with wet and dry weather.

"Quite a bit of rain has fallen in Cayuga County during the last week," says Colleen Cargile, a crop progress reporter with the Cayuga County FSA office. "The ground is heavily saturated, which has halted both planting and harvest."

It’s a totally different story in the North Country.

Corn dry-down rates were very fast this fall resulting in many farms harvesting a portion of their corn silage on the dry side," says Joe Lawrence, a crops reporter in Lewis County.

Crop progress
In Pennsylvania, 21% of corn for grain has been harvested, according to the Crop Progress Report. That’s slightly lower than the 25% five-year average. Corn silage is 86% harvested.

Soybean harvest has started, with 11% of the crop harvested.

Apple harvest is 68% complete, down from the 79% five-year average.

Winter wheat planting is behind, too, with only 35% of the crop being planted.

In Maryland, 24% of corn has been harvested; 46% is the five-year average at this time of year.

Only 26% of soybeans are matured, down from the five-year average of 40%.

Apples are 69% harvested, about average for this time of year.

The corn harvest in Delaware is 58% complete, which is about average. Soybeans are 19% mature, down from the five-year average of 29%

Corn harvest in New Jersey is 5% complete, which is right around average, but the crop is coming along slowly with only 50% of the crop mature, well-behind the five-year average of 86%.

In New York, 6% of corn grain has been harvested. The silage crop is 61% harvested, which is about average.

Soybeans are 17% harvested, also right about average.

Winter wheat plantings are behind with 43% of the crop put in the ground, down from the 60% average.