After several weeks of wet weather, the gravel roads and fields across Iowa exploded with a flurry of activity. Farmers across the state started planting their crops, and as it turned out, it was in a big way.

According to Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey, more than one-half of the corn crop was planted during the first week of May. Most farmers finished up corn planting in the second week of the month and moved right into soybeans. As of May 15, 92 percent of the Iowa corn acreage was planted and nearly half of the soybeans were in the ground. After a slow start, planting of both crops was ahead of the five-year average.

Written and shot by Joe Murphy
Joe is a photographer and writer for Iowa Farm Bureau.