The final day has come and gone and more records were set for all tour highs through Minnesota and Iowa. We sounded like a broken record with new high yield announcements tonight in Rochester with a full house of great farmers.
Minnesota corn toping the charts as the highest sample yield at 202.86 bu./acre. It’s the highest state average yield we found on the tour and only state to average over 200 this year. There is only one state that has also recorded a total yield over 200 and that was in Illinois just last year that finished at 204.14. The Minnesota crop carried it’s yield with a new record set for grain inches- 7.09 inches - which was up 17.38% vs. last year and 12.36% vs. the three year average. This crop didn’t carry as much disease pressure like the rest of the tour in southwest Minnesota but scouts found more presence of southern rust in southeast Minnesota.
The Minnesota bean crop was also a record at 1,247 pods in a 3x3 area. This took out the previous record at 1,239.76 set back in 2010. This bean crop is right on pace for maturity and has the strongest moisture since 2007. Not as many remarks came in from scouts on SDS and fields were relatively clean.
Iowa corn toppled over the previous record set last year, finishing 198.43 bu./acre this year and last year was a 192.79. This crop has many consistencies being strong ear counts, stronger grain length, but even stronger southern rust. The Iowa crop has all the potential in the world to be a huge crop but the presence of southern rust and many secondary diseases like tar spot and northern corn leaf blight are the number 1 thing that can limit the top end yield this crop very obviously has.
And for the final remarks – Iowa beans! Another record pod count average with 1,348.38. The Iowa beans are on pace for maturity and sitting good on moisture throughout the state. The potential has a chance to be stifled with the amount of SDS in the fields and is quickly taking top end yield out. The Iowa beans are strong, with great numbers and moisture – now they just need to fight through the remainder of the season.
After today, scouts pulled nearly 1,600 corn samples and 1,600 bean samples. It was an incredible accomplishment and this tour wouldn’t be what it is without them. 100 volunteers make this happen and if you’ve ever thought about joining, please take the opportunity to join us next year on the Pro Farmer Midwest Crop Tour 2026!