Hurricane Ian Drives Harvest Progress in North Carolina

Unsuitable weather has made for limited time for fieldwork for North Carolina farmers. Despite less than five days suitable for fieldwork this harvest, the North Carolina corn harvest shot up 7%. The reason for the surge? Hurricane Ian had farmers in a hurry to get as much harvesting done as possible. The storm moved inland Friday, bringing with it more than eight inches of rain to some parts of North Carolina. Other parts of the state recorded as little as three inches of rain and winds under 50 mph.

Despite Hurricane Ian, crop conditions in the state remain unchanged with 21% very poor, 25% poor, 25% fair, 22% good and 7% excellent. Soybean conditions fell slightly after the storm, at 2% very poor, 5% poor, 30% fair, 55% good and 8% excellent. The latest USDA report pegged soybeans at 14% harvested in the Tar Heel state, ahead of the five-year average of 10%.

Read more on Hurricane Ian’s impact on North Carolina harvest progress here.