Wet Weather Has Caused Problems For Will County Farmer's Corn Crop, And He's Not Alone
MANHATTAN, Ill. (CBS) -- A cornfield on a Will County farm might look good visually – but don't let looks deceive you.
As CBS 2's Vince Gerasole reported, if you listen to the tall cornstalks rustle, things might look as they should down on the farm.
"The weather has just been a struggle this entire year," said corn farmer Dave Kestel.
But underneath is where you get to the root of the problem.
"Come on, Mother Nature," Kestel said. "Take a break."
Fields are damp and wet, and heavy rains are making it soggier by the day.
"Saturday morning when I got up, we had six and a half inches," Kestel said.
The land on Kestel's farm is too wet even to think about getting heavy equipment out and stuck in the mud. So the Manhattan, Illinois farmer takes pictures of his flooded fields and hopes they dry, as he sits and waits.
"I feel like a caged bull," Kestel said. "I want to go and I can't."
An unusually wet spring delayed planting of Illinois corn by about five weeks this year, so what's in the ground isn't really ready for harvest. But persistent rains in recent weeks pounded the northern half of Illinois, where two-thirds of the corn crop is grown.
And farmers close to Chicago wonder if they'll be able to dry out and harvest anytime soon.
As far back as that wet planting season, when seed couldn't even be planted, we've been following Kestel's struggles this year,
He said he was worried about finances and being able to make it this year.
"My paycheck's out in the field," Kestel said. "If I can't go get it, that's a problem."
Only 4 percent of the state's corn crop has been harvested to date. That number is typically at 30 percent by this time.
"Mother Nature is the boss," Kestel said.
Downstate farmers have had more favorable conditions. Closer to Chicago, wet weather and an early frost are cause for concern.
"We always want to be done, you know, early November. But the chances of that happening are really slim," Kestel said.
Still, Kestle plows ahead with the patience of a farmer.
"I wouldn't trade this for the world," he said. "I'm living my dream. Am I getting rich? No. But do I love what I do? Absolutely."
