About 1 percent of Louisiana’s corn crop is in the ground. This is unusual for mid-March when farmers typically have much of the crop planted.

LSU AgCenter corn specialist Dan Fromme said cold, wet weather has kept farmers out of their fields.

“We always talk about planting corn when the soil temperature reaches 50 degrees. We’re now just starting to see some of that,” Fromme said.

Farmers also like to see daytime temperatures in the 70s and lows in the 50s when they plant.

Fromme said the window for planting corn will last about three more weeks. He projects the state could have around 600,000 acres — slightly less than last year. But with continued cooler conditions, some farmers may not plant corn.

“I’ve already heard talk about that,” he said. “If they can’t get planted in the next week, they may shift to another crop.”

Fromme said they may switch to grain sorghum or cotton.

Source - http://www.shreveporttimes.com/