Robb Rynd and his brother have always loved farming. They started working together on over 200 acres growing corn, soybeans, wheat, and sorghum. Last year was good, and Robb enjoyed walking the fields with his kids to see how the corn was growing. But this year has been much tougher.
For months, Robb has watched his corn with worry. He sees brown, wilted leaves and ears missing kernels. Every kernel this harvest matters more than ever. “It’s almost kind of depressing to look out there and say, ‘yeah, this looks bad,’” he shared.
Farmers across key corn-growing states are feeling the strain as climate change brings hotter nights, drought, and heavy rains at the wrong times. These weather shifts disrupt how corn plants pollinate, making a healthy ear of corn less certain.
The good news is that late-season weather helped this year’s crop grow strong, and experts now expect a record corn harvest in 2025. Still, extreme weather events have made farmers anxious throughout the growing season.
Heat at night has become a real problem. Robb said, “The hot nights mean the corn’s never getting a break. It’s just hot all the time. I know it’s wearing on me.” This constant warmth stresses the plants and affects pollination.
One issue farmers have noticed is "tight tassel wrap," where the corn’s tassel — the part that releases pollen — gets wrapped too tightly in the leaf because the plant grows too quickly in the heat. That means less pollen is spread, leading to patchy ears of corn. Mark Licht, a crop specialist, said this problem has only been seen once before in 20 years.
High temperatures can also lower pollen quality and dry out parts of the corn plant, making it harder for the plant to reproduce. Drought combined with heat often causes more trouble, but even wetter places like Iowa, which had plenty of rain, saw pollination problems.
Heavy rains at the wrong times add another challenge. Rain can cause corn smut, a fungus that grows on the ears and damages the crop. Farmers also worry about nutrients washing away when rain runs off fields, hurting both their yields and nearby rivers.
Despite these challenges, the U.S. saw a sharp drop in drought this summer, with most areas getting near or above normal rainfall. This helped set the stage for what experts call a “monster” corn crop next year.
Yet, some farmers had a tough start. Philip Good, who farms in southern Mississippi, planted his crops two months late because of nearly constant rain. He lost plants to flooding and had fertilizer washed away but managed to catch some good weather later on.
Farmers are aware that weather is getting more unpredictable. Brad Rippey, a USDA meteorologist, noted that hotter oceans and higher humidity lead to these changes—and hotter nights may continue to stress crops like corn and soybeans.
For many, late summer is a critical time to judge how well their crops will do. Patchy pollination can cost farmers a lot. If 15% to 25% of the corn ear is empty, that loss adds up across large fields. That uncertainty makes it harder for farmers like Robb to plan investments or expansions.
New technology is helping a bit. A company called PowerPollen uses machines to collect and spread pollen to save fields that didn’t pollinate well naturally. They’ve nearly doubled their “rescue” pollination jobs since 2018.
Still, farmers know that some things are beyond their control. “You learn to roll with the stress because most of it you can’t change,” said Larry Walton, a neighboring farmer who often irrigates his dry land.
This year has been tough, but farmers are holding on, hoping next season brings better weather and better yields.