Wet fields keep Ill. corn planting at standstill
SPRINGFIELD — Illinois farmers still can't begin planting their corn crops due to muddy fields caused by the heavy rains that inundated the state in recent weeks.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture says that as of Monday there's been no significant planting done in Illinois because many fields are simply too wet for farmers to get out in them in tractors.
The USDA says just 1 percent of the state's corn crop has been sown. This time last year, three-quarter of the state's cornfields were planted, more than double the five-year average of 36 percent.
Nationwide among key farming states, 4 percent of the corn crop is in the ground, down from 49 percent a year ago at this time.
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