78% of Iowa Corn in Good-Excellent Condition

The USDA’s latest Iowa Crop and Weather Report indicates 78 percent of Iowa’s corn crop is in good to excellent condition as the 2026 growing season heads into its final weeks. Lance Lillibridge, who farms near Vinton, says this year’s corn harvest may not set a record.

“But I think we’ve got a pretty dang good one,” he says. Lillibridge says his area in eastern Iowa has benefitted from timely rains.

“We’re sitting pretty good,” Lillibridge said. “The tank is full when it comes to water.” The USDA considers 67 percent of Iowa topsoil to have adequate moisture. Soybean conditions are rated 77 percent in the good to excellent range. Harvest season in Iowa usually kicks off in early to mid-September for corn, with combine activity in soybean fields starting about a week or 10 days later. Last year, Iowa’s corn harvest totalled over two-point-seven BILLION bushels and nearly 600 MILLION bushels of soybeans.