COATESVILLE, Ind. – Harvest in west central Indiana was fast and furious this fall, according to Coatesville, Ind., farmer Mark Legan, after receiving only half an inch of rain in both August and September.

“After a wet start and ample moisture through July, soybeans were five to seven bushel per acre off our five-year average, and corn was right at the five-year average,” he told Farm World as he wrapped up the 2025 harvest season. “Overall, better than we were anticipating. Soil moisture until recently has been very dry. A few recent rains have helped replenish top soil moisture, while subsoil remains dry.”

In its final Crop Progress Report for this year, released Nov. 24, the USDA said the U.S. soybean harvest is officially complete and the corn harvest is nearly finished at 96 percent to 97 percent complete. Winter wheat planting is 97 percent complete, with emergence at 87 percent, cotton harvest at 79 percent complete, and sorghum harvest at 91 percent complete.

Justin Glisan, state climatologist of Iowa, told Farm World, “Much of the Ag Belt is experiencing drier conditions, and have had drier conditions through much of fall. This is reflected in drought expansion across segments of (the Midwest and the Appalachians) region. Soil moisture, both top and sub-, have been trending drier as well.”

He said, “Drought and abnormal dryness span much of the eastern Corn Belt, with D2 (severe drought) to D3 (extreme drought) conditions from eastern Illinois to northwest Ohio. This swath represents the driest parts of the Ag Belt.

“There are also pockets of D1 to D2 conditions across much of Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan,” he added. “Portions of the western Corn Belt have fared better, with pockets of D1 (moderate drought) in Iowa, Nebraska, and South Dakota.”

The report said in Indiana, corn harvested was 97 percent complete, winter wheat planted was 94 percent complete, and winter wheat emerged at 77 percent. In Illinois, corn harvested was 99 percent complete, winter wheat planted was 98 percent complete, and winter wheat emerged at 87 percent.

In Michigan, corn harvested was 92 percent complete, winter wheat planted was 100 percent complete, and winter wheat emerged at 99 percent. In Ohio, corn harvested was 98 percent complete, winter wheat planted was 99 percent complete, and winter wheat emerged at 97 percent.

In Kentucky, corn harvested was 99 percent complete. In Tennessee, corn harvested was 99 percent complete, and cotton was 92 percent complete. In Iowa, corn harvested was 99 percent complete.

Glisan said outlooks into the middle of December show higher probabilities of colder temperatures from the High Plains to the Appalachians: “On the precipitation side, there’s a bullseye of drier chances centered on Iowa, and stretching into Missouri, and many of the bordering states. There are higher chances of wetter conditions from the eastern Corn Belt to the Appalachians.”

The next weekly USDA Crop Progress Report is slated to be released in early April 2026, the agency said.