The heavy spring rains we experienced back in early June are but a fading memory but the damage they caused our soils is still very evident.Water is a forceful agent.As it strikes the ground it breaks down soil aggregates causing them to lose their structure.In many ways the damage rain droplets do to soil structure can be likened to the explosive nature scud missles do to buildings.
As soils compress from the heavy weight load of water they lose their oxygen supply.Without sufficient oxygen root growth slows.Cooler soil temperatures and fungal pathogens further restrict root growth.With time a significant differential in top growth becomes evident between areas of fields that have the best internal drainage to those that have the worst.This can be noted in the top photo.This is going to lead to considerable variation in silking across fields and considerable variation in harvest moisture.This will also pose a considerable challenge for growers who are contemplating applying a foliar fungicide.To avoid potential interferance with pollination and ear set foliar fungicides are best applied at brown silk.