Devin Davis’s work on his family farms began at age 10. He eventually returned to work there after attending the University of Northern Iowa, Drake and the Culinary Institute of America. Helping operate 2,000 acres in Warren, Clarke and Madison counties, Davis hopes to boost soil health and reduce risk using no-till, cover crops and buffer strips. In addition, Davis has worked to expand his crop rotation by double-cropping winter wheat with soybeans. He receives help on the farms from his great-uncle Warren Davis.

It’s been pretty darn wet and unseasonably cold, as well. We did not get much done until yesterday with the sprayers out in the fields. We have not touched the planter yet. If the next two to three weeks can be drier and highs near 75 degrees, that’s getting close to when we want to hit dirt. We’ve had other flurries of activities, such as some anhydrous spraying, but you don’t want to plant in mud. We’ll wait and see how it goes for awhile.

This week was a busy one. Tractors finally started to get moving and a lot of people started planting or finishing up field work Monday through Wednesday. Another rainstorm came through Thursday and stopped most field work. Watching it rain yesterday (Sunday) and today (Monday). We are catching up on maintenance, and we will have the sprayer running where we can before it is dry enough to plant again. We are hoping to be back in the field planting on Wednesday.

Busy week this week. I believe most people in this area got into the field as the last of the rain missed most of us. The last of fertilizer was going on as well as spraying and tillage. The weekend saw planters running, and we are sitting about 40% planted ourselves.

We had a great window for field work this last week. Everyone has been running hard since last weekend. I believe a lot of people will finish with planting or be getting close in the next few days. We've finished corn, and we our trying to wrap up the last 35% of beans as well as finish preemerge spraying. Hay fields are starting to look pretty good, and we will be thinking about first cutting soon.

We had a wide-open window of dry conditions across the area for the last week. Almost everyone has wrapped up planting with the beautiful weather, and some hay fields were cut. Things are dry, and a lot of people would like to see rain to make sure germination is successful.

We picked up between 2 and 4 inches of rain over the weekend and heading into the week. This week's colder weather kept the fields from drying out. Field work has been at a standstill for the week, but most people were wrapping up before the rain. There has been some discussion on spotty emergence and replanting but no more than an average year. We are now waiting and seeing how emergence and early growth goes. My top priority for the upcoming week will be to start postemerge spraying on our earlier-planted corn that is starting to reach V2-V3. After that, it will be mowing and putting up hay.

We received about an inch of rain over the 22nd to the 24th. Then we had another half inch between the 29th and the 31st. The crops needed both the rain and the heat that we have had. They are growing rapidly now that we are receiving a good amount of heat as well as rain. First-cutting hay has been cut and put up. People are focusing on sidedressing corn and weed control. Hopefully we will have a chance to get back into the field soon.

We did not have a lot of fieldwork days this week. We received rain at the beginning of the week and a few inches over the weekend. Beans have started to put on trifoliates, and the corn is reaching V4-V8 depending on plant date. The rain and warm weather was needed, and the crop is coming along quickly now.

It was a quiet week due to the multiple rounds of rain that came through our farm. Some ponding is visible in fields, and some corn is yellowing from excess moisture. Only about one day was suitable for field work. We haven’t had any major repairs. We had minor repairs on the sprayer and the hay equipment for when it’s time to finish spraying and second cutting of hay. We have determined not to do any replanting since we believe it’s too late for that to be successful. We also don't believe the ponding will amount to any serious yield loss at this time.

It was a good week for field work. Last weekend we had a few tenths of rain, but it’s been clear since. The crops have dried out, and the wet spots have started to look better. Any hay that wasn't cut before the rain was cut and put up this week. Later-planted corn is knee-high, and earlier-planted corn is waist high or higher. I expect the majority of the corn to be 6 feet tall by the 4th and tasseled by the second week of July.

We received 1.4 inches of rain Saturday, June 20, and 0.3 inches over Sunday night. Things were back to looking wet. Toward the end of the week, some fields were dry enough for field work. We did post herbicide on soybeans.

The heat has rolled in along with scattered storms across our area last week. We avoided the worst of the flooding but still received 2.4 inches over the last week. Corn was chest high to tasseling in our area by the 4th!

This week was hot and dry again. We saw the first airplanes and drones starting on fungicide in our area. The second cutting of hay was also being wrapped up.

Another week of hot and dry weather. The crops are holding up to the heat better than expected. Airplanes and drones are putting on fungicide in our area. The last of the second cutting of hay was put up as well. We are scouting corn for rootworm beetles and soybeans for Japanese beetle as we decide on soybean fungicide and insecticide decisions this week.

Thunderstorms on Monday (July 20) dropped between 1.9 and 4 inches of rain across our area. Once the fields dried out, we tried to finish with fungicide and continue to scout fields for problems. Soybeans are putting on pods, and the corn is through pollination without much issue. The fields that received too much rain this spring are still highly variable, but for the most part the crops are doing well.

We had spots of light rain across our area, but the heat has really helped the wet crop areas catch up some. Variability is still the main concern for us. We've wrapped up field work, and getting ready for the harvest season is the priority. Combine, tractor and semi repairs or maintenance is the name of the game for us.

We had scattered rainfall again, especially in the south part of my area. The corn is moving along quickly this year again, and the beans are starting to finish flowering. We have good moisture, but I'm sure another mid-August rain wouldn't hurt the soybeans. At this point, we are just waiting and seeing what happens with the weather this month while we finish repairs for harvest.

This week has hurt the crops around here. Another 2.5 to 3.5 inches of rain fell over the weekend, and the rest of the time it was overcast. Fields are saturated, if not ponding again. This much rain will likely kill the low spots in the field. Hopefully the weather will turn next week and we will dry out quickly for the rest of the crop. Third cutting of hay is next up for us if the weather will cooperate. Most of our corn is moving into dent stage and is finishing quickly. We may be taking off the first-planted corn the first week of September. Beans are fully podded now and look decent considering the weather.

This week was good for us. The fields have dried down and there is little to no rain in the forecast. The late-planted beans in the area are R3-R4, but most of everything else is R5. Most of our corn is R5. We will look for a mid-September start for ourselves. Finishing up repair projects and getting the bins ready for harvest are priorities.

The crops continue to progress with the good, warm weather we have been having. The third cutting of hay has been put up, and some drones are starting to put down cover crop seed. Silage chopping is going on or starting soon. I expect harvest to really start around here the third week of September.

The week was hot and dry. This pushed crops along faster than we would hope for. A lot of corn in our area is turning quickly, and grain harvest will be here before people know it. Silage chopping is well under way in the area. The last of third-cutting hay is also being finished up. We are starting our cover crop seedings and finding the last jobs that need to be done before harvest. If this heat continues, we hope to be cutting some higher-moisture corn next week.

It was a quiet week here for us. Rain early in the week dropped 3.5 to 5 inches across the area, and that has been keeping us from testing the combine out. Hand-shelled corn off our late-April-planted fields are around 23-25% moisture. We will try to get started as soon as the fields dry out. The crops still have low disease pressure in our area and are standing well. The last of the hay that wasn't ruined with the rain has been put up, and the silage choppers are running when they can. Airplane and drone cover crop applications are continuing.

Harvest progress in our area is at zero. Most of the crops are ready to combine, however we have been hit with storm after storm all week. This will likely be the wettest September on record. Another 3 to 6 inches fell across our region.

Another week of wet weather. The combines have continued to be stopped. People are hoping to start next week, but the forecast is calling for rain. Some corn fields appear to be beginning to deteriorate from stalk rots, and the soybeans have started to lay flat.

Rain continued at the beginning of the week, but the weather has since cleared up. We began picking corn again over the weekend, and we believe we will be switching to beans next week if it stays dry. I am still hearing reports of grain sprouting on the ears and I have seen it on our own operation. Hopefully, it will not affect the grain quality too much.