With 47% of Iowa corn acres in the dent stage, according to the latest crop progress and condition report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the crop is nearing harvest season.
Crop phenological stages:
— Corn in dough stage: a thick or dough-like substance is present in all kernels.
— Corn in dent stage: all the kernels have dented, ear is firm and no milk is present in the kernels.
— Soybeans setting pods: pods are developing on lower portions of the plant, with some blooming still on top of plant.
The 2026 crop is 5 percentage points ahead of last year’s crop in terms of the share in the dent stage. Corn acres in the dough stage reached 90% during the Aug. 17 through Aug. 23 reporting period, which is 3 percentage points ahead of last year’s crop. One percent of corn acres had reached maturity as of the reporting period.
Soybean acres setting pods reached 88% during the period, which is slightly behind last year’s crop. Soybean condition was 77% good to excellent during the period and corn condition was 78% good to excellent, according to the report.
Iowa subsoil and topsoil had mostly adequate moisture conditions, according to the report which put subsoil moisture at 66% adequate and topsoil moisture at 70% adequate.
Iowa had “unseasonably” dry weather during the reporting period, according to State Climatologist Justin Glisan, who reported the statewide average precipitation was just over two-tenths of an inch, while the normal is more than nine-tenths of an inch.
The dry weather, however, followed a particularly wet week where Iowa’s statewide average, at 2.60 inches, was nearly triple the normal for the Aug. 10 through Aug. 16 reporting period.
Glisan reported a “shift to more seasonal weather” for the most recent reporting period, when the statewide average temperature was 71.1 degrees Fahrenheit – less than 1 degree above the normal for the period.
Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig said the weather conditions were “beautiful” throughout the last week of the Iowa State Fair, which he said had “fairgoers turning out in record numbers.”
According to the Iowa State Fair, 1,218,834 people attended the event in Des Moines over its 11-day run, beating the previous attendance record from 2024 by more than 36,000 people.
“As students and families settle into the routines of a new school year, farmers are keeping an eye on the forecast as crops continue to mature,” Naig said. “Warmer temperatures and near-normal rainfall into early September should help keep the crops moving along as we inch closer to the busy fall harvest season.”
