ST. PAUL  — Minnesota farmers took advantage of ideal weather last week to double their progress in harvesting corn.

According to the USDA’s weekly crop report, Minnesota saw 6.6 days suitable for fieldwork for the week ending Sunday. That’s the most days suitable for fieldwork this season. Most of Minnesota saw a killing frost toward the end of the week.

Minnesota’s corn harvest was 58 percent complete, 12 days ahead of the previous year and four days ahead of the five-year average. It’s the first time this season that the corn harvest was ahead of normal.

The soybean harvest is 97 percent complete, nearly two weeks ahead of last year and over a week ahead of average. The sugar beet harvest is virtually complete.