The USDA anticipates Nebraska ag producers will plant 9.9 million acres of corn this year.
Nebraska Corn Board Director of Research Kelly Brunkhorst says drought is still having a significant impact on agriculture as farmers prepare to plant their crops. Brunkhorst says farmers are in a much different situation this year compared to last spring.
"Last year we saw good soil moisture, a March that was above normal in temperatures, and really anxious farmers just waiting to get in to the field and start planting the crop. As we look at this year, the drought has continued to have significant effects on our soil moisture, which is really, really depleted."
The UNL-based National Drought Mitigation Center says 96 percent of Nebraska remains in extreme or exceptional drought.
Brunkhorst says planting should begin next Wednesday throughout most of the state. Nebraska is the third-largest producer of corn in the U.S., behind Iowa and Illinois.