It is getting to be a bit of a broken record, but cold, wet conditions have again swept across the state over the past week. Iowa Secretary of Agriculture, Mike Naig, says the weather has kept farmers out of fields and continues to challenge cow-calf producers. There were just 0.8 days suitable for fieldwork and only about four percent of the annual oat crop has been planted, more than one week behind last year and the five year average. Cold temperatures and snow have hampered pasture growth as well. With mixed forecasts for this coming week, Naig says we are still likely a couple of weeks away from widespread field work. It is a different situation in south central and south east Iowa, which continues to be dry, with over one-third of the topsoil considered short or very short on moisture.
