Corn Maturity & Freeze Dates
Corn Maturity Forecasts
Come August growers start calculating corn maturity and checking freeze tables. The following tables indicate maturity for selected Nebraska sites.
Tables 1-3 estimate the maturity date of corn varieties by location based on normal temperatures for the remainder of the growing season. All locations were calculated for a mid-season variety with a 105-day maturity (Table 1). Northern and Panhandle stations were also calculated using a 95-day variety (Table 2), while southern stations were calculated using a 115-day variety (Table 3).
Below normal temperatures for the remainder of the growing season will push maturity levels later into the fall, while above normal temperatures will result in quicker maturity. Average hard freeze dates in Nebraska are
- Oct. 1-10 for extreme northern Nebraska and the Panhandle
- October 10-17 for the central third of the state and the southwest
- October 17-24 for extreme southern Nebraska and the southeast corner of the state.
Al Dutcher
State Climatologist
| Table 1. Estimated date of corn maturity based on normal temperature through black layer for a 2450-GDD variety (105-day maturity). | |||
| Date of Emergence | |||
| 5/5 | 5/15 | 5/25 | |
| Ainsworth | 9/20 | 9/26 | 10/2 |
| Beatrice | 9/1 | 9/6 | 9/10 |
| Grand Island | 9/9 | 9/14 | 9/20 |
| Holdrege | 9/10 | 9/16 | 9/22 |
| Indian Cave | 8/27 | 9/2 | 9/6 |
| Lincoln | 8/29 | 9/3 | 9/7 |
| McCook | 9/7 | 9/13 | 9/19 |
| Mitchell | 10/6 | 10/11 | 10/17 |
| Nebraska City | 8/29 | 9/3 | 9/8 |
| Concord | 9/16 | 9/23 | 10/2 |
| North Platte | 9/16 | 9/22 | 9/28 |
| Red Cloud | 9/2 | 9/7 | 9/12 |
| Scottsbluff | 10/1 | 10/6 | 10/12 |
| Table 2. Estimated date of maturity based on normal temperatures through black layer for a 2240-GDD variety (95-day maturity). | |||
| Date of Emergence | |||
| 5/5 | 5/15 | 5/25 | |
| Ainsworth | 9/5 | 9/9 | 9/14 |
| Mitchell | 9/17 | 9/20 | 9/24 |
| Concord | 9/3 | 9/8 | 9/13 |
| North Platte | 9/3 | 9/7 | 9/12 |
| Scottsbluff | 9/13 | 9/17 | 9/21 |
| Table 3. Estimated date of maturity based on normal temperature through black layer for a 2450-GDD variety (115-day maturity). | |||
| Date of Emergence | |||
| 5/5 | 5/15 | 5/25 | |
| Beatrice | 9/13 | 9/20 | 9/27 |
| Grand Island | 9/27 | 10/5 | 10/15 |
| Holdrege | 9/28 | 10/7 | 10/17 |
| Indian Dave | 9/8 | 9/15 | 9/21 |
| Lincoln | 9/10 | 9/16 | 9/23 |
| McCook | 9/25 | 10/3 | 10/12 |
| Nebraska City | 9/10 | 9/17 | 9/24 |
| North Platte | 10/18 | 10/17 | 10/30 |
| Red Cloud | 9/17 | 9/24 | 10/2 |
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