Wright County corn and soybean farmers have a lot to be thankful for as Thanksgiving approaches this week. Their crops were among the best ever after a harvest completed early in perfect weather, according to an agriculture official. Not only that, they’re getting much higher prices this year. But it was a bad year for apple growers, who took heavy losses from frost and hail. "The corn and soybean guys are happy and excited I think about their higher bottom line this year," Kevin Bergquist, director of the federal Farm Service Agency office in Buffalo, said last week. And Albion Township farmer Doug Triplett agreed. "I have no complaints," he said. "Everything’s above average … It’s been a good year." Bergquist estimated up to 98 percent of the county’s 85,000-acre corn crop was in the bin, and a similar amount of soybean acres were combined weeks ago. "This was just one of the most pleasant, positive harvest seasons we’ve had in a long, long time," he said. Until rains came in late October and early this month, farmers enjoyed "perfect harvest conditions" with sunshine and warm weather that allowed the crop to mature. The vast majority of the harvest was done without interruptions, Bergquist said, and it was completed about two weeks earlier than usual. The rain caused some after-harvest tillage problems on heavy soils. "But really it’s hard to find anything bad about this harvest," he said. "It’s been mostly good." That’s in contrast to last year when cold, wet weather during the harvest prevented some corn and soybeans from fully maturing, he said, and kept farmers struggling into December to get the crop in. "Overall the crops were just excellent" this year, Bergquist said. Isolated areas were hit by hail, "but generally as a whole the Wright County corn and soybean crops were amongst the best ever." "Everybody pretty much agrees that it was just an excellent crop both in quality and quantity." Yields vary, but farmers were getting 175 to 200 bushels of corn per acre and 45-plus bushels of soybeans. Average yields are 160 bushels for corn and the lower 40s for soybeans. "Those are excellent yields for Wright County," he said. Yields were generally lower on the lighter, poorer soil north of Annandale, Bergquist said. But they still ranked among the better crops. A mid-July hail storm caused serious damage in some fields so some farmers may not have had such good crops as a result, but damaged crops amounted to only 2 or 3 percent of the total. Prices provided more good news. Farmers had the best of both worlds with excellent yields and excellent prices all at the same time for both corn and soybeans, Bergquist said. Corn was going for about $4.80 per bushel compared to about $3 last year, and soybeans were bringing about $11.80 versus about $8 a year ago. Triplett said he finished harvesting the last of 530 acres of corn Nov. 10, about a week earlier than normal and a month before last year’s Dec. 8 wrapup date. That was the latest he’s seen the harvest take. Before that, he harvested about 970 acres of soybeans, getting about 50 to 60 bushels per acre, while the corn produced about 180 to 190 bushels. Both crops were above average in yield and quality. "That’s been a lucky break too," Triplett said of the high prices. Export demand Prices usually go down at harvest time, he said, but this year export demand, especially from China, and disappointing crops in other states have pushed them up. Apple growers, most of them in the eastern part of the county, weren’t as fortunate. "It’s been a bad year for apple farmers with the late frost and the scattered hail," Bergquist said. A frost on May 9 damaged the apple blossoms, causing severe losses. Then hail struck in July. Most of the county’s 40 growers have been affected, he said. The Farm Service Agency was exploring whether the growers qualify for federal disaster aid, Bergquist said.