By Angie Peltier, UMN Extension crops educator Photo: Liz Stahl, UMN Extension Some Minnesotans are experiencing a bit of ‘weather whiplash’ as some areas that experienced a historically severe drought in 2021 are currently experiencing very wet weather. In addition to delaying spring planting, the weather also impacts when crop pests will emerge or arrive. On May 11, 2022, Dr. Dennis Todey, Director of the USDA Midwest Climate Hub, Bruce Potter, University of Minnesota Extension IPM specialist, Drs. Jeff Coulter, UMN Extension corn agronomist and Seth Naeve, UMN Extension soybean agronomist, joined UMN Extension educators David Nicolai, Anthony Hanson and Jared Goplen for a wide-ranging discussion of how the wet 2022 spring weather and forecast for the rest of the growing season will affect spring field operations, summer crop growth and development and the arrival and emergence of crop pests. This was the first episode of the 2022 Strategic Farming: Field Notes program in this serie
Anthony Hanson, Extension educator - IPM; Jeff Coulter, Extension corn agronomist; Seth Naeve, Extension soybean agronomist; Dean Malvick, Extension crop pathologist Heavy flooding and ponding in central MN meadows and fields. Photo: Adam Austing near Howard Lake, Wright County. A large swath of central Minnesota saw 4 to 7 inches of rain between May 7-14, with some locations reporting over 8 inches. This resulted in heavily flooded fields with standing water, even on sandy soils, or heavy runoff on hillsides. This all occurred only recently after conditions were finally fit for planting, especially for corn. This has left many growers asking how long recently planted seeds can survive underwater or in heavily saturated soil, and if there is any action they should be taking now, especially if soil crusting is a concern. Flooding Whether a seed or seedling survives flooding is based on the length of time that flooding lasts and the soil temperature. Warmer temperatures increase plant re