(25News Now) – Harvest season is more than halfway complete in the Heart of Illinois, and recent dry weather has helped farmers make progress in the fields after a wet start to the season.
Charlie Hensley, manager of the Peoria County Farm Bureau, says the last two weeks have brought favorable conditions for harvesting corn and soybeans.
“There’s been a lot of crop harvested in the last two weeks, especially beans,” Hensley said.
Hensley says soybean yields have been good so far, while corn yields appear to be lower than farmers had hoped.
He says rain throughout September and early October forced farmers to stop and start their harvests as they waited for conditions to improve. The recent stretch of drier weather has allowed more farmers to get back into the fields.
Despite the progress, Hensley says there is still a considerable amount of crops left to harvest, particularly in areas farther north in Illinois.
Farmers are also dealing with higher input costs and concerns about diesel prices.
Overall, Hensley describes this year’s harvest as successful so far, despite challenges with weather and crop yields.
He expects harvest to wrap up over the next two to three weeks if favorable weather conditions continue.
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