This information was summarized from a May 3, 1999 teleconference with ISU Extension field specialists in crops.

• Farmers in eastern, east central, central, northwestern, and north central areas of the state have planted up to 50 percent of their corn acres. Other areas were slowed by wet field conditions. A few fields of soybean have been planted.
• Small grains, including oat and winter wheat are looking good. Development of the oat crop ranges from just planted to the tillering stage in northeastern Iowa.
• Established alfalfa and new seedings generally look good. Alfalfa stands of 8 to 12 inches were reported. Brian Lang (northeast) reported infections of spring black stem and alfalfa mosaic virus in some fields. He also mentioned poor emergence of some late-March-planted alfalfa.
• Reports of alfalfa weevil larvae were few and scattered, nothing near the economic threshold (see Marlin Rice's article [1] in the April 26 ICM newsletter).