Ohio weather conditions can turn on a dime — one minute, rains are preventing a timely corn planting, and the next minute sunny skies are paving the way to play catch-up.

Corn planting may be behind schedule now, according to the Ohio Agricultural Statistics Service, but by the end of May nearly all of the corn could be in the ground, said Peter Thomison, Ohio State University Extension agronomist.

“Although corn yield potential generally begins to decline after May 10, good yields are still possible with late May plantings,” Thomison said.

It’s when corn planting drags into June that the crop could be subjected to problems later in the season, as late planted corn is more sensitive to drought stress, more vulnerable to stalk quality issues, and more prone to disease and insect problems.

“Many times late planted corn is associated with lower yields because the crop is subjected to less favorable growing conditions (high temperatures and less moisture) during grain fill,” Thomison said. “This puts more stress on the crop and hurts yield potential. Much of what impacts the crop has more to do with what corn experiences later in the season than conditions at the time of planting.”

Everything from a drought to a hurricane has the potential to hurt the corn crop more than late spring planting, Thomison said.

“The real issues growers will face this season once they get their corn in the ground are controlling weeds and managing nitrogen fertility,” Thomison said.

On the bright side, most growers do not need to be concerned about switching to shorter season hybrids, he said.

“One argument for switching to shorter season hybrids right now is if a grower is concerned about drying down corn,” Thomison said. "Shorter season hybrids can help reduce drying costs. However, for the most part, growers are better off sticking with the hybrids they have now.

“Soil temperatures have been fairly cool, and early planted corn is just now beginning to develop. So corn planted this week will not be that far behind early planted corn in terms of maturity.”

For now, Thomison recommends growers focus on the dry fields for corn planting and delay planting fields that may still be soggy.

Corn is Ohio’s most valuable field crop commodity. According to the Ohio Department of Agriculture, corn production contributes $2.1 billion to agriculture. Feed grain serves as a main component of corn production, but the crop is also becoming an integral source for ethanol.