Farmers resilient even at 'critical stage' for planting

Farmers are running out of time, and it could cost all of us.
Because of wet weather, most producers in the Hannibal region have few, if any, crops in the ground.
Projections already call for lower yields, and it’s just going to get worse the longer rain keeps falling.
“We’ve reached the critical stage,” said Al Kennett of the University of Missouri Extension in Ralls County. “The ultimate affect is if there’s a shortage of grain, the price of food will be higher.”
Be it agriculture, the stock market or gas prices, you can always find a topic for discussion at Shortline 66 gas and convenience store in Frankford.
These days, much of the conversation revolves around who’s planted and who’s not.
“We learn how to farm everyday in here,” said Jim Hansen, Shortline co-owner with Greg Ellis. “We get discussion on it all the time. You learn more here than you do on ‘The View.’”
Like most farmers, Troy Blackwell of Frankford projects a steel demeanor.
After more than two decades of planting each spring, Blackwell’s learned to roll with the punches.
But with 3,800 acres of cropland sitting idle, even he admits to being “a little bit” concerned.
“Most years, I’m done planting corn in April,” Blackwell said. “We try to start planting beans the first week in May.”
Jim Adams rents land to Cliff Mahar, who has planted about 650 acres of corn.
“That’s quite a bit,” Adams said. “He’s got all of the dry ground planted. He’s getting to the wet ground now.”
Blackwell estimates half of his acreage is bottomland. He was spending about $300 a day on gasoline to pump water back into the Mississippi River until he finally decided to give it up.
Kennett said many farmers are in a bind because they’ve already put chemicals on their fields to plant corn or have contracts to deliver the grain. There’s still plenty of time to plant soybeans.
“There’ll be some yield reductions in corn,” Kennett said. “That’s not true for soybeans yet.”
One alternative crop is milo, but it’s used more in animal feed than in human food.
Back at the Shortline, Hansen said producers are handling the damp weather pretty well, and Blackwell remains optimistic.
“It’ll all get planted, maybe later than we want,” Blackwell said. “You got to worry about something you can change. If you’re going to be dumb, you’ve got to be tough.”