Minnesota harvest gets stuck in wet and cool weather

Frosty weather has accelerated the maturity of soybeans, but the cool, wet conditions have been making the Minnesota harvest difficult.

Excess soil moisture in the central part of the state has caused trucks and machinery to repeatedly become stuck in the fields. Overall, statewide temperatures for the week averaged 2.1 degrees below normal, according to the Minnesota Agricultural Statistics Service.

The latest crop report released Monday showed statewide topsoil moisture conditions rated 1 percent very short, 4 percent short, 75 percent adequate and 20 percent surplus.

There were fewer than four days on average that were suitable for field work the past week.

About one-third of soybean acreage has been harvested, compared with only 48 percent for the same date a year ago and 65 percent for the five-year average.

Soybeans that rated good to excellent were 72 percent, which is 2 percentage points higher than last week. Corn condition was rated 72 percent good to excellent, which is three percentage points higher than last week.

Corn was 95 percent mature compared with 86 percent last year.