Crops on pace for a big harvest

ST. PAUL (AP) -- Most Minnesota farmers are expecting a bumper harvest as crops remain healthy and continue to mature rapidly, agricultural statisticians report.

Damage from the July 25 storms across western and central Minnesota did produce hail damage in Lincoln and Lyon counties, near the South Dakota border, according to statisticians Chris Engen and Christy Meyer of the Minnesota Agricultural Statistics Service.

Fields around the city of Granite Falls, which was severely damaged by tornadoes, also experienced hail and wind damage.

Elsewhere, according to the weekly crop-weather report issued Monday, crops are progressing well with seasonably warm temperatures, and formerly wet fields have had a chance to dry out.

Minnesota topsoil moisture conditions were rated 84 percent adequate, 5 percent surplus, 10 percent short and only 1 percent very short, based on field surveys conducted on Friday.

Crop progress for corn, soybeans, spring wheat, barley and oats is ahead of the past five-year average for this week, while sweet corn, a smaller but important cash crop for southern Minnesota farmers, is at the five-year average stage of development.