The Nation : Rains Slow Midwest Crop Deterioration

Deterioration of the Midwest’s drought-parched corn crop slowed last week and soybean fields improved slightly as scattered showers and thunderstorms moved across the region, state offices of the Agriculture Department reported. Last week’s rains, which ranged from several inches to a fraction of an inch, were generally too late for much of the corn crop, which was going through its critical pollination stage stunted and malnourished after three months of drought. Most major corn-growing states that depend on rainfall rather than irrigation reported that about two-thirds of the crop was in poor to very poor condition. One notable exception was Iowa, where 45% of the crop was reported in poor to very poor condition, contrasted with 55% last week.