We continue to see slower-than-normal progress in corn development, with only 12% of the Illinois crop in the dent stage by August 17, compared to the 5-year average of 45%.

This is due to the crop’s being behind normal since planting and to the average to below-average accumulation of growing degree days: GDD since May 1 range from less than 2,000 in northern Illinois to about 2,500 in southern Illinois, averaging about 130 behind normal.

The good news is that the crop is not crashing due to dry weather, so development remains tied to GDD totals to date. Much of the crop in the southern part of the state was planted late, so in many fields it has accumulated only 2,000 or fewer GDD since planting—similar to or less than accumulations since planting in northern Illinois. So the corn crop over much of the state needs 500 or more GDD to bring it to maturity, providing that it has an adequate water supply to maintain photosynthetic activity up to maturity.

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