Most area farmers have been crossing their fingers through the cool temperatures of summer, and now they’re hoping cooler temperatures can hold off until next month.

“It was like there was no summer at all at times. Every farmer you talked to back then was very concerned that the crop wouldn’t mature before freeze. We’ve still got a couple weeks to go here,” said Hollandale farmer Bob Muilenburg.

Muilenburg described the growing season as nervous.

Brad Nelson described the season as unusual.

“It’s been one of the most unusual growing seasons I’ve ever experienced in the fact that it’s been cool and dry. We’ve had it be cool and wet before but not cool and dry,” said Nelson, who grows corn and soybeans along Interstate 35 north of Albert Lea.

Clarks Grove farmer Jerry Demmer said he hopes to get through Oct. 5 before a freeze.

“I think the bottom line is that we don’t have an early frost. If we don’t have an early frost we’ll be just fine,” Demmer said.

Muilenburg said that there’s a big difference between a frost and a freeze. Frosts will often just affect the top of sweet corn. A freeze could do more damage to crops if it lasts more than a few hours.

Farmers were able to get into the field to plant by mid-April, which Demmer said is about 10 days to two weeks ahead of a typical year.

“The summer was cooler than usual,” Demmer said. “We’re behind on GDUs, growing degree units, at this time, but we hope that Mother Nature cooperates and we make those up and the crop matures before the frost”

Sweet corn

The sweet corn harvest began in April and lasts about six to eight weeks into October.

While the early crop is producing well, Muilenburg is concerned about the crop to be harvested later in the year. He said there wasn’t enough rain late in the year for that crop. Though the heat in September is good, Muilenburg said he’s concerned that heat will cause the sweet corn to mature at one time.

So far the company has not been able to keep up with the crop, and one of Muilenburg’s fields was bypassed because the sweet corn had gotten too ripe.

Field corn

Despite the weather, farmers are predicting a strong field corn harvest.

“Every year is different, but I’m real optimistic. I think we’ve got some real good corn,” Hayward farmer David Paulson said.

Part of the reason for that is because the weather has improved at the right time.

“The weather we got going right now for us is great. The next week or so is going to kind of finish off this corn crop,” Paulson said.

This late in the season, rain will have little effect on corn growth. However, Lair said the recent heat drives the maturity of corn, and he said the recent heat has helped the corn mature.

“This is just what we ordered. This is what we’ve been praying for. If we have another 10 days, two weeks of this weather, it’ll make our corn crop mature,” said Lair.

Rain this late in the year will no longer affect the corn growth. In fact, Demmer said less rain may be better for corn so it dries out.

“I think one of the things all farmers would hope for is that we do see the nice weather continue on to naturally dry, or field dry, the corn so we save that expense on the drying of the corn,” Demmer said.

Part of the reason for the potentially strong corn harvest is hybrid seeds that can withstand the weather, Demmer said.

Soybeans

Soybeans haven’t fared as well in the mild, dry weather, but farmers are hoping to see average yields.

The soybean pods and seeds don’t grow as well during the dry weather, Nelson said. Some soybeans have been affected by diseases like white mold and sudden death syndrome.

Lair also said the cool nights and wet mornings have contributed to soybean diseases, especially in late soybean crops. However, it’s difficult to predict the crop, and Paulson said he’s hoping for an average soybean crop.

Rain could still affect soybeans that are green, but Nelson said rain will not affect beans that are maturing and turning yellow.

Carrots

The carrot harvest will begin after the sweet corn harvest in October.

Muilenburg said he anticipates a strong carrot harvest because carrots aren’t as affected by the cool, dry weather.

However, he said carrots typically add weight and bulk in September, but that may not happen because of the dry weather.

Prices

With a potential strong corn crop, farmers are also facing a decrease in corn prices. Commodity prices typically drop because of good potential production, Demmer said.

Transportation, labor and energy also affect commodity costs, Nelson said.

Part of the reason the corn prices are down is because experts are predicting a large corn yield this year, Lair said. Before harvest is not a time when corn prices are high. Those numbers could improve once farmers begin harvesting crops.

Paulson said final corn prices will depend on things like the final crop numbers across the U.S., the demand from foreign nations like India and China.

Many farmers already have some deals in place for this year’s crop, so prices will affect next year’s crops.

“Seasonally, this is when we’re at our lows. This is when a person really doesn’t want to have to sell crops,” Paulson said.

Harvest

Most beans will be ready for harvest by late September or early October. The corn harvest would follow soon after in mid-October.

“Every year is different, and every year is a new year. Every year seems to have its challenges,” Demmer said.

“Every year’s got a little different quirk. I don’t really know what you really want to call normal or what’s abnormal. They’re always different,” Paulson said.

“That’s part of the fun of it. You can’t outguess Mother Nature,” Paulson said.