Mother Nature smiled on Kankakee County this spring and summer and it has translated to happy farmers this fall.

A significant number of Kankakee County farmers are harvesting record soybean yields, and corn production is at or near record heights as well.

“We are in a garden spot,” Momence-based farmer Clay Abbott said earlier this week. “We are very blessed to be where we are.”

Area farmers are harvesting soybean fields that are typically producing 75-80 bushels per acre, and corn per-acre yields are tipping the scales between 225 to 275 bushels.

In a word, it’s been an amazing 2025 ag season, and at this point, about 75% of soybeans are under roof.

Timely rains, plenty of warmth and outstanding farm professionals have produced a bountiful harvest, which is being completed at a lightning fast pace due to a more than two-week stretch of above normal temperatures and dry conditions, commonly known as an Indian Summer.

This combination of factors has led to nearly the entire soybean crop being harvested ahead of schedule and many combines have already been invading corn fields.

Abbott, who farms about 10,000 acres in the eastern portions of Kankakee County, said several farms have produced record-setting yields.

How impressive has it been? Abbott was asked.

“There have been a lot of 70 bushel yields and a fair amount of 80s. I would say mid-70s for an average. Let’s put it this way. We are now disappointed when we get into the 60s of per-bushel yields,” he said.

In this region, yields in the 60-bushel range were once considered a blessing. Now, it can best be described as good, but far from great.

Until the Monday night rains arrived locally, many area farmers had a dilemma on their hands. The soybeans were actually too dry.

Harvesting crops that are too dry poses the problem of lost weight. Simply put, a product that is too dry weighs less and means more soybeans are needed to make a bushel.

The Monday night rain, which stretched into Tuesday, should rectify that issue.

Brad Moritz, of Buckingham, who farms about 3,000 acres with his father, noted this autumn is the first time they switched from harvesting soybeans and moving into corn before the bean work was complete.

The soybeans had dried down so quickly, they jumped from one field to the next to the next.

“It’s been a rapid, rapid harvest,” he said. “But I don’t know one farmer who would turn down some rain.”

A/C, water in demand

Moritz noted in the 2008 harvest, his first harvest after college graduation, that they produced 55-60 bushels per acre of soybeans in his western Kankakee County area.

“And I was doing backflips in celebration,” he chuckled. Now, the mark has risen, and it has risen significantly.

This hot spell of weather did cause one issue for Moritz. The air conditioning system collapsed in his auger cart pulling tractor. He attempted to live through it, but could not any longer.

The in-cab temperature rose to 127 degrees. A service call had to be made as the Indian Summer heat became unbearable.

“I have to tell you that on Oct. 1, we don’t normally spend a lot of time worrying about the A/C in a tractor.”

Herscher-area farmer Matt Perreault noted he had been taking water tanks equipped with fire hoses to fields being harvested as a precaution against the possibility of fire.

“We’ve been sitting on edge,” he said regarding the dry conditions. “Everything has been so dry. Everything is ready to ignite.”

Prices, tariffs are big concerns

While there had been no need to quell any flames on his acreage, there has been a very concerning issue for Perreault and other farmers and this one concerns the per-bushel price.

As of early this week, per-bushel bean prices hovered at the $9.85 mark and corn was near $3.90. To make a profit, beans need to be at $11 and corn should be at $4.50.

As a result, the bountiful harvest will assist them. More bushels equate to more revenues.

The hope for higher prices rests with pending trade tariff talks between the United States and China. China is a large consumer of U.S. corn and soybeans.

Farmers hope these two super powers can reach an agreement so more grain travels to waiting Chinese consumers.

Talks, however, are not slated until November. Many area farmers will likely have sold their harvest to meet loan due dates.

“I would have loved to have seen a trade deal worked out already with China,” Perreault said. “We can pay to store it and hope something happens. It’s a tough spot to be in.”

With tariff talks very much on the minds of farmers, the chief focus remains the 2025 harvest and the joy Mother Nature and modern agriculture have provided.

“I wasn’t sure exactly what was in these fields,” Abbott said. “But these soybeans have surprised me on the good side.”