How will late planting dates impact IP soybean supply?

Wet conditions continue to put a hold on the planting of identity-preserved (IP) soybeans, which are mostly grown across states in the Upper Midwest. Like commodity soybeans, IP soybeans are typically planted within a two to three week window in early May, depending on location, soil temperature, soil moisture and weed control options.

Soybean farmers constantly balance environmental conditions at planting with planting windows. To produce the best yield, farmers will wait to plant when soil moisture conditions are good and soil temperature is at 50 degrees Fahrenheit and increasing in the short (10 day) term. Wet soil limits soybean access to oxygen, inhibiting plant growth and increasing plant susceptibility to a variety of seedling diseases. Traffic on wet soils increases soil compaction, which reduces yield over the long term.

For IP soybean buyers, it’s important to be able to estimate supply of the product at harvest. David Kee, director of research for the Minnesota Soybean Research & Promotion Council, suggests researching crop progress and weather forecasts of your growers.

“Knowing your growers and having access to reliable weather data will greatly improve your ability to estimate supply,” Kee says. “Subscribing to the USDA’s NASS [National Agricultural Statistics Service] Crop Progress and Condition Reports for your region provides a great source of information about the cropping situation and can help aid in your supply predictions.”