i took a drive out to farmer brown's cornfield after i went to campus and things are looking a bit shaky in industrial agriculture...according to the palmer drought indices http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/oa/climate/research/prelim/drought/palmer.html most of the corn belt is in a short term severe to extreme drought for april and may ( lake county indiana is extreme short term and moderate long term...as if those of you with lawns or gardens or both don't already know that )...from a distance the corn looks okay...except for those pesky weeds...but farmer brown hasn't doused the field with atrazine yet...perhaps because he's waiting to see if the crop fails...i'm told that corn doesn't need a steady supply of water (this is dense yellow # 2 we're talking...not the heirloom stuff i planted ) but that at certain times such as its early development and when it tassels it is a must...this is one of those times and there is little in the way of precipitation...as the photos move from a wide view down to individual plants you can see some have started to wilt..corn likes hot weather but not hot, dry weather...it could be a long summer for those without crop insurance and those who underwrite the policies.
No comments:
Post a Comment