Why Is Weather So Important To Farmers?

Our weather station at home

I am often asked why I spend so much time watching the weather and checking forecasts by family and friends.  I know our neighbors think it's weird that I have a Davis Vantage Pro 2 weather station on our house and broadcast it online, I also installed one at the office that does the same thing.  I even took meteorology classes at Purdue along with being a weather spotter for the National Weather Service in Wisconsin.  Most would ask why this really matters to us.

Part of the office weather station in Mapleton

Well, to us in agriculture Mother Nature controls everything.  In all of our crops weather plays the largest factor to how good our crop will be, or if it will make it at all.  It really boils down to a number game.  For instance, every day after May 1st we delay corn planting we lose up to a bushel of yield per day.  So if planting is delayed by a week that is around $32/acre at the current market price per acre.  For a 1,000 acre corn grower than 1" of rain at the wrong time could be a $32,000 loss for the farm.  In soybeans, we can lose around 1/2 a bushel for every inch weeds grow past 4", and if weeds grow sometimes more than a inch a day that same week could cost us $20/acre.  So if that was 1,000 acres of soybeans that would be $20,000 across his farm. 

Once the crop is growing we also need timely weather as well.  During corn pollination we can lose yield if the temperature gets above 90F or the night time temperature doesn't get below 70F since the pollen won't last as long in the heat and if the night doesn't get cool enough the plant can't rest.  In 2012, we had farmers lose up to 100 bushels of corn per acre when the temperatures were over 100F during pollination.  The same can be said about timely rainfall.  In soybeans we need rain in late July and early August to maintain yield along with increase seed size and keep pods from aborting.  In this window a 1" rain will typically add around 5 bushels of yield in soybeans or around $55/acre. 

A RadarScope screen shot from 2013

There are several more scenarios where we can gain or lose yield based on the weather, but in the grand scheme of things it accounts for up to 70% of our overall yield every year.  I don't think there is any other profession out there where an ever changing variable that no one has control over is the main thing you depend on for income.  These are the reasons I and our customers pay so much attention to the forecast (and are often upset when it's wrong).  So the next time you're mad your lawn is brown, think of that guy who has their whole life invested in something that looks like your lawn and help us pray for rain.