This picture comes from southern Wisconsin. The farmer in the picture is working his fields this spring in preparation for planting corn which should take place late next week. Tillage is an important element for a successful crop. Tillage is either done in fall after the crop is harvested, or in spring before the crop is planted. Many farmers have been forced to do their fall tillage in spring because their harvest was so late.

The short-term precipitation outlook looks good for the early planting season in the Corn Belt, besides an above average amount of precipitation on the extreme western portion of the Corn Belt. For crop insurance purposes, the first day corn can be planted is around April 11^th to April 15^th depending on the location in much of the Corn Belt.

Remember, we are always looking for more agricultural pictures from anywhere in the world. Submit pictures to farmlandforecast@colvin-co.com.