Farmers braved late-summer rain Wednesday as they traveled across White County to assess this year’s corn crop, with the annual crop tour projecting an average yield of 182.3 bushels per acre.
Twenty-nine people participated in the 2026 White County Crop Tour, collecting data from 96 fields across the county’s 10 townships. Participants generally reported above-average yields and described this year’s crop as one of the more consistent in recent memory.
“It’s probably one of the most consistent samples that we’ve done,” said Kent Williams, who toured Hawthorne Township east of Carmi. “Some disease was present, but not excessive. We did see some pollination issues in one field, but overall, it was a consistently good sample.”
The projected 182.3-bushel county average is well above the 2025 crop tour estimate of 162.5 bushels per acre on harvestable acres. USDA reported White County’s actual 2025 yield at 133.8 bushels per planted acre, the lowest planted-acre yield in the county during the past decade.
Gray Township recorded the highest estimate this year at 214.7 bushels per acre. Phillips Township had the lowest at 149.2 bushels per acre, with participants reporting the area missed many of the summer rains received elsewhere in the county.
Other township estimates were Hawthorne at 197.3 bushels per acre, Enfield at 190.4, Emma at 189.2, Heralds Prairie at 186.7, Burnt Prairie at 185.5, Mill Shoals at 182.9, Indian Creek at 175.0 and Carmi at 152.3.
Teams collected samples from nine to 10 fields in each township, measuring stalk and ear populations, ear length and the average number of kernel rows.
The average ear length increased from 6.9 inches last year to 7.2 inches this year. Average kernel rows remained unchanged at 16.1, while the average ear population increased from 28,140 to 30,374 per acre. The average ear-to-stalk ratio also increased slightly from 97% to 98%.
The highest USDA corn yield recorded in White County during the past 10 years was 190.7 bushels per acre in 2021.
This year’s crop tour was sponsored by the White County Farm Bureau, York Ridge Agency LLC, Peoples National Bank and Consolidated Grain & Barge. The Carmi FFA Chapter was among the volunteers assisting with the tour.