STARKVILLE, Miss. ( WJTV ) – Yield quality for Mississippi’s corn crop this year will largely hinge on which fields were irrigated and which ones were dry land, according to researchers at the Mississippi State University (MSU) Extension Service.

“Corn crop condition varies considerably depending on whether it is grown in fields with supplemental irrigation or not,” said Erick Larson, grain crops specialist with the MSU Extension Service. “Mississippi corn dependent on rain has gone since early June without much appreciable rainfall, so the crop outlook has diminished considerably in that time.”

Producers planted about 580,000 acres of corn in the state this year, which is down 27% from 2023, when 790,000 acres were planted.

“Growers increased soybean and cotton acreages, so corn acreage is off the pace this year because of that and some other issues associated with high input prices and fertilizer lingering from a couple of years ago. Unfortunately, heat and drought stress during late June and July may further reduce crop expectations. Most of the Mississippi corn crop will not mature until the end of July to mid-August, so the next couple of weeks will influence what kind of crop potential we have,” Larson stated.

The scaled back acreage also comes down to prices, which MSU Extension agricultural economist Will Maples said are down from the recent highs of the last few years. The December 2024 corn futures contract averaged $4.10 as of July 15, compared to $5 a year ago. The USDA is projecting an average price of $4.30 per bushel for the 2024-25 marketing year.

Planting days for this year’s corn crop were scattered across late February to early May due to frequent springtime rainfall.

Preston Aust, MSU Extension agriculture and natural resource agent based in Humphreys County, said the crop has seen little in the way of damage from insects or diseases in west Mississippi. He expected early-planted corn to reach the physiological maturity needed to begin harvest just before July ends.

“Slightly cooler temperatures are helping with irrigated acres, allowing growers to shut down irrigation and stay on cruise control until they see black layers forming on the corn,” Aust said.

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