Certainly the USDA's yield forecasts this season have generated a lot of discussion and market movement, yet for the first time this season it's out to the field to gather Objective Yield Survey data:
Andy tagged along with Greg Thessen in Benton County:
There are very specific procedures in place designed to capture an accurate picture from across the state:
Along with an accurate picture with-in each field:
Here's one tool they use to gather soybean data:
It measures several spaces with-in each field where pods, nodes and much more are counted:
In this field the corn was planted in late April and the beans mid-May and the corn was nearing dent stage while the beans are still putting on pods.