Planting's almost in the bag

Finally, after one of the most tumultuous planting seasons in the last few decades, it looks like there are just a handful of corn acres left to plant this spring, and soybeans aren't far behind.

Monday's USDA-NASS Crop Progress report shows 99% of the corn crop is in the ground, while 87% of the nation's soybeans are planted. The corn figure is right on schedule, while the soybean progress is just 2% behind the normal pace. Also slightly behind normal is corn and bean emergence, 5% and 8% behind, respectively. Nationwide, 69% of the country's corn and 67% of its soybeans are in good-to-excellent condition.