Despite rain, area harvest underway


It’s been a wet late summer and fall. The clouds of mosquitos that have plagued those venturing outside in the evening testify to that, as does the water standing in low areas of farm fields.
Since July 1, the Benson area has had 15.98 inches of rain – 6.19 inches above average – which places it third in the record books for the July, August, and September period. 1995 holds the record with 20.96 inches of rain with 1986 second with 17.37 inches. The three months average 9.79 inches of rain.
While southern Minnesota was flooded with torrential rains last Wednesday and Thursday, the Benson area received just 1.3 inches from the storms.
Southern Minnesota has seen historic rainfall amounts, Kent Thiesse writes in his column on Page 6 of the Monitor-News this week. A large portion of the region received 4 to 6 inches of rainfall, and some areas 10 to 14 inches of rainfall, in a 48-hour period...
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Pictured, top photo: Minnesota’s soybean and corn harvest is underway with soybean yields of 45 to 70 bushels per acre. Western Minnesota has escaped the heavy rains that have ruined crops and slowed the harvest to the south. Randy Mikkelson harvests soybeans just north of Benson Monday.
Pictured, bottom photo: With no rain in the forecast for the coming days, significant progress should be made with the soybean and corn harvests.