Double whammy

Farmers hit by heavy rain, high diesel prices

At a time of the year when Iowa farmers want to maximize their time in the fields harvesting corn and soybeans, they are instead having to endure one rainy day after another.

And when they eventually get into the fields, they will have to contend with diesel fuel prices that are about $3 a gallon higher than what they usually are.

Mark Calmer, who grows corn and soybeans on fields that straddle the border of Calhoun and Webster counties, said farmers have lost almost a month of their usual harvesting time to the rain.

He said because of all the rain some of the top beans on his soybean plants are rotten.

The corn, he said, is four to five moisture points wetter than usual. That can affect the quality of corn stalks and make the plants very susceptible to being flattened in a strong wind.

"This month is on track to go down as one of the warmest and wettest Septembers on record for the state of Iowa," Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig said in a written statement. "As we move into October, warm weather is expected to continue, and we may finally get a break from the rain. Farmers are eager to harvest their crops and will be ready to get combines rolling as soon as the fields dry out."

Last week, because of the weather there was just one day suitable for field work, according to the Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship.

The department reported that 3 percent of the state's soybeans and 5 percent of the state's corn has been harvested.

Calmer said he thinks there will be a possibility of getting into the fields to harvest early next week.

"I don't think you can afford to wait this year," he said. "You can't afford to wait for perfect conditions."

While this year's harvest will run later into the year than usual, Calmer said Iowa has had some late harvests in the past. He remembers running a combine on Thanksgiving day one year.

At gas stations across Iowa, diesel fuel costs about $6 per gallon. Because the diesel fuel farmers buy is exempt from taxes, it costs about $5 a gallon. But that is still $3 a gallon more than what it usually costs.

"It's a total ripoff from the oil companies," Calmer said.

He said he believes the government should put an export tax the oil companies that are exporting diesel fuel at a time when the prices in the United States are so high,

He estimated that with the current prices, Iowa farmers will pay $75 more per hour for operating every piece of equipment used in this year's harvest.

With little opportunity to let the corn and soybeans dry where they stand in the fields, farmers will have to dry them. The good news for farmers is that the price of the LP gas used in grain dryers has not skyrocketed like diesel fuel has. Calmer called the price of LP gas "pretty reasonable." But farmers who do not have their own grain dryers could end up paying more to get the corn and beans dried at an elevator.

After the crops are harvested, Iowa farmers usually apply anhydrous ammonia to the fields to provide a fall fertilizer. But the ground has to be dry to apply that fertilizer, so there is a chance some farmers won't be able to apply it.

Calmer said lots of rain creates severe compaction in the soil that farms will have to deal with.

"If it gets dry enough you can run a ripper through it," he said.