Rains in April ensure good corn development in MS

Planting of the second 2024/25 corn crop in Mato Grosso do Sul reached 100% on April 25, two weeks ahead of the 2023/24 crop. According to the Siga-MS Project, executed by Aprosoja/MS, conditions are mostly good. 

"Around 76% of the state's corn crops are in good condition, with emphasis on the North, Northeast and West regions, where this percentage exceeds 90%", highlights the agronomist at Aprosoja/MS, Flavio Faedo Aguena.

According to Flavio, for a crop to be classified as "poor", it must present several negative criteria, such as high pest infestation (weeds, pests and diseases) or flaws in the plant stand, excessive defoliation, leaf curling, early yellowing of plants, among other defects that cause significant losses in productivity. "A "regular" classification is given to crops that present few problems related to pests, reasonable plant stand and little yellowing of developing plants. A "good" classification is given to crops that do not have any of the previous characteristics, with healthy plants that guarantee good productivity."

Aprosoja/MS estimates that the second harvest will be 0,1% higher than the previous cycle (2023/2024), with a cultivated area of ​​2,1 million hectares. The expected average productivity is 80,8 bags per hectare, in line with the production potential observed in the last five harvests in the state. Based on these numbers, the expectation is for a total production of 10,2 million tons, which represents a significant growth of 20,6% compared to the previous cycle.

"The second corn harvest has excellent production potential. This is due to the good volume of rainfall in April, which mainly benefited corn crops that were in the phenological stages between V10 and R2. It is estimated that 50% of the crops were in this phenological period in April. However, there is still a risk of drought and frost until the end of the crop cycle."

The harvest is expected to begin at the end of May and continue until the last week of August. However, the peak of the harvest is expected to occur in July.