Howell Farm's field corn this August is strikingly tall -- taller than I've ever seen it -- I've been looking since 2008.
The shortest stalks in the field are about twice my 6 foot frame. And the tallest are taller still.
Indeed, Howell Farm's entry in the "Tallest Corn Stalk" category won the blue ribbon at this year's Mercer County 4H Fair. True, it was the only entry, but at 16 feet it was a formidable contender nonetheless. "Wicked tall" says Farmer Rob. He thinks it might even compete for the blue ribbon way up in Flemington.
To what factor is this monster corn crop attributable too? Hard to say for certain, but June 2013 was, by far, the wettest June in New Jersey recorded history, dating to 1895. July 2013 was the fifth warmest on record. More notable, according to the New Jersey state climatologist, is how hot it stayed in the evenings of July. "NJ has almost certainly not had any month in more than a century of observations with such excessive overnight warmth," he writes in his monthly report.
Do these record setting weather patterns affect the growth of corn? It seems plausible.
The shortest stalks in the field are about twice my 6 foot frame. And the tallest are taller still.
Indeed, Howell Farm's entry in the "Tallest Corn Stalk" category won the blue ribbon at this year's Mercer County 4H Fair. True, it was the only entry, but at 16 feet it was a formidable contender nonetheless. "Wicked tall" says Farmer Rob. He thinks it might even compete for the blue ribbon way up in Flemington.
To what factor is this monster corn crop attributable too? Hard to say for certain, but June 2013 was, by far, the wettest June in New Jersey recorded history, dating to 1895. July 2013 was the fifth warmest on record. More notable, according to the New Jersey state climatologist, is how hot it stayed in the evenings of July. "NJ has almost certainly not had any month in more than a century of observations with such excessive overnight warmth," he writes in his monthly report.
Do these record setting weather patterns affect the growth of corn? It seems plausible.
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