Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Farmer says harvests could vary mile-by-mile in South Dakota

SDPB
/
SDPB

This story is from an interview on SDPB's daily public-affairs show, In the Moment, hosted by Lori Walsh.

A South Dakota farmer says harvests will vary widely across the state because of the drought.

Travis Mockler
SD Corn
Travis Mockler

Travis Mockler says even farmers in the same general area could experience very different production.

“The yields are going to be all over the board, and it’s going to change mile by mile, depending on where you’re at. We’re going to be anywhere from 10 bushel on the corn to 230. It all depends on where you were at. And that’s just in our county."

Mockler farms corn, alfalfa and soybeans in the southeastern part of the state. He says recent rain had a miniscule effect on crops that suffered through a summer of drought.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture says only 2 percent of the state’s corn crop and only 1 percent of the soybean crop is in excellent condition.