FAIRMOUNT, Ill. — A dry stretch meant good harvest weather in eastern Illinois, but farm equipment doesn’t always cooperate.

Steve Fourez in Vermilion County, Illinois, had a machine break 8 acres into the harvest this year, which meant waiting for parts. But he was finished harvesting beans Oct. 9 and expected to start harvesting corn Oct. 17.

BLUE MOUND, Ill. — In early October, central Illinois farmer Ryan Damery was halfway through a promising soybean harvest.

Damery, who farms corn and beans in Macon and Christian counties, said he was seeing 75-96 bushels per acre so far on beans. However, corn was a little disappointing, coming in at 215-253 bushels per acre.

VICTORIA, Ill. — With frequent rains and equipment breakdowns, Jay West of Knox County, Illinois, was only 15% into harvest Oct. 6 and waiting on parts for a repair while one machine was up and running.

He said they are running about two weeks behind normal, with harvest typically complete by Halloween. 

TAMAROA, Ill. — By mid-October, Austin Lovelady was finishing up with harvest and had all his winter wheat planted. Now comes the financial reckoning.

The Perry County farmer, like many in the region, got his corn and soybeans planted early last spring. Likewise, harvest started early. He is pleased with his yields but shares concerns with others about expenses, especially fuel.

MANHATTAN, Ill. — Beans have been drying down unevenly on Dave Kestel’s farm in northeast Illinois, making for a start-and-stop harvest this year.

Kestel started working on this year’s harvest the week of Oct. 5. Due to the weather and a combine repair, as of Oct. 14 he was two-thirds done harvesting beans and had one field of corn complete.

McLEANSBORO, Ill. — Joseph Rexing cut back on planting corn this year, largely due to the price of nitrogen fertilizer. His yields are good, but it’s been a losing proposition for a while.

“I’ve farmed all my life, but it’s hard,” the Hamilton County farmer said. “I don’t want to be a pessimist, but farming is bad news.”

MORGAN COUNTY, Ill. — Tim Thompson finished harvesting his western Illinois corn crop Oct. 2. Following a one-day rain delay, he started on soybeans on Oct. 4 and expected to be finished by the end of that week.

Thompson said he saw corn moisture percentages around 18, which is pretty conservative, while soybeans were around 10-11% moisture. He was expecting to have minimal drying bills this year for his crops.