The Texas corn crop has reached the midway point, and expectations are for an above-average crop, according to a Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service expert.
Ronnie Schnell, Ph.D., AgriLife Extension agronomist, Bryan-College Station, said 2020 delivered mixed results for Texas producers due to unfavorable weather conditions. Despite challenges, some areas did see better-than-expected yields.
Schnell said weather variabilities, especially rainfall and its timing, were the major contributor to field success or failure around the state. Too much rain delayed or prevented corn planting in some areas while drought created problems for many other regions.
“It’s been a challenging year for Texas corn growers,” he said. “Corn acres were down, and yields have been mixed so far here at the halfway point. I didn’t expect to see above-average yields because of how dry it’s been and how spotty the rains were all season.”
Corn acres were down slightly this season, Schnell said. According to a U.S. Department of Agriculture August report, Texas producers planted 2.5 million acres of corn in 2019 compared to 2.4 million acres in 2020.
About half of Texas’ corn acres are harvested, he said, with the state’s major corn-producing region – the Panhandle – typically winding down in October. Schnell said he was somewhat surprised to see the USDA’s expected corn yields to be up slightly overall this season due to weather conditions.
The USDA reported peracre yields at 133 bushels last year, and an updated per-acre yield forecast of 138 bushels for 2020 as the growing season continues. “Yields have been mixed around the state so far,” he said. “I observed corn barely reaching waste high by tasseling stage along the Coast. You expect bad yields when plants are stunted due to dry weather, but timely rain fell in some areas and made a good crop.”
Irrigated and dryland Texas A&M AgriLife Research Corn Performance Trials in Rio Grande Valley, Corpus Christi and along the Upper Coastal region performed well despite challenges in the region. Full reports and multi-year data will be available this fall.
Irrigated fields around Monte Alto and San Patricio produced 176 bushels per acre and 163 bushels per acre, respectively, he said. Two dryland fields further north near Port Lavaca and Wharton produced 153 bushels per acre and 166 bushels per acre, respectively.