FarmWeekNow (RFD Radio Network)

Our dedicated team of reporters, editors, photographers, and broadcasters strives to provide you with the latest news that is important to farmers and rural residents in Illinois.

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Warm, dry spring lights fuse for devastating Canadian wildfires

4 days ago | farmweeknow.com | Bryce Anderson

The 2025 wildfire season in Canada is off to an explosive start after a very warm and dry winter and spring. Published reports as of late Sunday, June 1 show more than 170 active wildfires in Canada, mainly in the provinces of Manitoba and Saskatchewan. More than 90 of those fires were assessed as "out of control" Thursday, May 29. Fires have also erupted in northern sectors of British Columbia, Alberta and Ontario provinces.
Profit Watch: Unplanted acres

1 week ago | farmweeknow.com | DeLoss Jahnke

Deadlines are fast approaching. The last NASS Crop Progress report shad corn planting at 87% complete, ahead of the 5-year average of 85%. But looking deeper into the numbers, some questions quickly come to mind. Illinois, at 82% planted, means there’s about two million acres still open. And Ohio finally pushed through the 50% mark. As USDA’s Prevented Planting Program deadlines approach, will farmers have difficult decisions to make?
Shifting weather patterns moving 'tornado alley' east

1 week ago | farmweeknow.com | Lyndsay Jones

Tornado alley — the loosely defined U.S. region where tornadoes occur most frequently — is shifting eastward as atmospheric conditions favorable to tornadoes become more common in states outside of the Great Plains, a CBS Chicago meteorologist told ag professionals last week. And not only are tornado-producing conditions becoming more common in the deep South and upper Midwest, David Yoemans said, but the number of tornadoes that occur in a given outbreak has also increased.
June setting up for "near normal" precipitation

1 week ago | farmweeknow.com | Jim Taylor

Meteorological summer kicks off June 1. "The first full week of June, the outlook is showing the best chances of below-normal precipitation for the state," Illinois State Climatologist Trent Ford said during a Tuesday visit with RFD Radio. "Maybe a little warmer and drier patter."That's welcome information for southern Illinois, which has experienced heavy rain this spring. Northern Illinois, however, continues to see the impact of a lack of soil moisture.
Moweaqua's Emily Adcock says cattle "just opened so many doors for me"

1 week ago | farmweeknow.com | Rita Frazer

Emily Adcock of Moweaqua is one of many farmers in the spotlight on the RFD Livestock Report during National Beef Month. Emily told RFD Radio’s Rita Frazer one of her fondest memories of her life with cattle was when she was three years old and leading her first heifer around the farm. "Right from the start, (I) was immersed in cattle and fell in love and just haven’t been able to stop being around them," she said.
Profit Watch: Three-day win streak

2 weeks ago | farmweeknow.com | DeLoss Jahnke

The end of April and the first half of May are typically tough on futures markets, unless there’s a weather scare that has a big impact on planting progress. But now we’re in the second half of May, and grain and soybeans have had green screens each of the first three days of this week. “You go back to the charts five, 10 [or] 15 years, it seems like corn wants to find a little buying interest.
Profit Watch: Old crop corn

3 weeks ago | farmweeknow.com | DeLoss Jahnke

Early May usually isn’t the best time of year for corn prices, especially in years that have good planting progress. While parts of Illinois have been kept out of the fields, other areas have run well ahead of schedule. As of Sunday, 62% of the nation’s crop had been planted, according to USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service. Most western states were running ahead of schedule. On first glance, a good planting number gives traders an impression that a big crop will get planted.
May to end with cooler temps after brief warmup

3 weeks ago | farmweeknow.com | Jim Taylor

Temperatures will approach or exceed 90 degrees in Illinois this week, but it will be short-lived. “It’s only going to be around for 24 to 36 hours and that’s basically on Thursday,” said Freese-Notis Weather Meteorologist Paul Otto during a Tuesday visit with RFD Radio. The Metro East area will likely surpass 90 Thursday, along with other southwest Illinois locations. “But a cold front is on the back end of that and that will save us from an early summer,” Otto said.
May to end with cooler temps after brief warm-up

3 weeks ago | farmweeknow.com | Jim Taylor

Temperatures will approach or exceed 90 degrees in Illinois this week, but it will be short-lived. “It’s only going to be around for 24-to-36 hours and that’s basically on Thursday,” said Freese-Notis Weather meteorologist Paul Otto during a Tuesday visit with RFD Radio. The Metro East area will likely surpass 90 on Thursday, along with other southwest Illinois locations. “But a cold front is on the back end of that and that will save us from an early summer,” Otto said.
Rollins closes U.S. border to animals

3 weeks ago | farmweeknow.com | Jennifer Carrico

U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins closed the United States border to Mexican cattle, bison and horses as the threat of New World screwworm (NWS) moved within 700 miles of the border. Effective immediately, as of May 11, imports of live cattle, bison and horses are halted as NWS was found in cattle as far north as Oaxaca and Veracruz, Mexico.