666 IOWA DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 



period. All crops improved during June but were still below normal 

 development on July 1. More than half of the July rainfall occurred 

 during the first week. Temperatures though generally below normal 

 were high enough, in connection with the heavy rains of the first week, 

 to cause rapid development of diseases of spring wheat which for the 

 second year in succession was almost a failure in the western and north- 

 ern counties. Hail storms were unusually prevalent the first half of July. 

 The greatest damage, approximately $100,000, occurred in Scott County 

 on the 9th. 



Harvest and haying weather was generally favorable. Though oats 

 got a bad start and looked unpromising till late in June, they made a 

 remarkable showing at harvest and thrashing time. The yield was above 

 normal and the quality good. At the close of August, 91 per cent of the^ 

 small grain had been thrashed, which is 20 per cent more than normal 

 and the largest in the last 10 years. Winter wheat yield was good 

 though slightly less than the 10-year average. Spring wheat was disap- 

 pointing. 



From July 14 to September 8, temperatures were almost continuously 

 below normal. As a result, corn became more and more backward, so that 

 by September 7, the bulk of the crop had only reached the hard dough 

 stage and was considered to be three weeks late. Reports from hundreds 

 of correspondents on September 1, indicated that with normal weather 

 only 42 per cent of the corn would be safe from frost by September 20. 

 But the unexpected happened in that abnormally warm and dry weather, 

 September 9-27, forced the corn to mature rapidly, so that when killing 

 frosts came from September 29 to October 1, they did not damage more 

 than 10 per cent of the crop and this was easily absorbed by feeding on 

 the farms. Killing frost did not visit the southeastern counties till 

 October 29. The corn crop of 1920 is the largest ever produced in Iowa 

 and the quality is very good. Warm and generally dry weather in October 

 dried the corn so that husking made good progress during the last half 

 of the month, except in the north central counties where locally heavy 

 rains and warm weather made cribbing in large quantities unsafe. At 

 the close of November, corn husking was 77 per cent finished. "Hogging 

 down" corn averages 7 per cent this year as compared with 8 per cent 

 last year. 



The cool summer was very beneficial for potatoes. The yield per acre 

 averaged 110 bushels, which has been exceeded but twice in thirty years 

 and the total crop is more than twice that of last year on less acreage. 

 It is rather rare that a bumper crop of corn and a bumper crop of po- 

 tatoes are raised in the same year. 



Fruit, truck crops, sugar beets, pop corn and sweet corn were all good 

 crops. 



Soil conditions were generally favorable for seeding winter wheat dur- 

 ing September and in some counties the acreage was increased over that 

 harvested this year. Growth continued till checked by the abnormally 

 cold weather of November 9-17. Of the acreage seeded, 90 per cent made 

 good growth and became well ?stal)lished; 8 per cent germinated but made 



