By Lori EhdeRock County and several area counties received much needed rain this week, but the big question is, "Did the moisture come in time to help drought-stricken crops?"According to SWMN Farmers Co-op crop consultant Shawn Vis, corn was starting to suffer under the stress of the recent heat wave."We’ve had corn pollinating under extreme heat," Vis said. "When that happens — even under normal rainfall — 90- to 100-degree heat when corn is shedding pollen is not ideal."He said the weather is changing just in time."These rains, and especially the 10-degree drop in temperature, will really help to relieve stress on the corn," Vis said, "especially since it’s in blister stage and starting to set an ear."Recent rainfall totals in Rock County vary widely depending where the reports come from.The northern part of the county, such as the Kenneth and Hardwick areas, received an inch to 1 1/2 inches last week Monday. That same day, Luverne had only a few tenths, and south of Luverne, in the Kanaranzi and Ash Creek areas, reports were only trace levels.As of Tuesday afternoon, those areas were still quite dry and some fields there were starting to show wear. "It’s pretty bone dry there," Vis said Tuesday.Wednesday morning totals in Luverne at 1.19 inches, and in Hills 1.85 inches. But north of Beaver Creek, farmers were reporting nearly 5 1/2 inches of rain."That’ll pretty much make those guys for the year," Vis said.As varied as Rock County’s rainfall has been, so is its soil quality from one area to the next.The Steen and Hills areas haven’t received much rain (only six tenths Tuesday morning compared with nearly an inch by Hardwick) but the soil there is richer, and crops are still in good condition."We have to remember we had an abnormally wet spring," he said. "And our soil can hold moisture fairly well, so there’s still some moisture down there."Vis said the hot, dry spell hit at a bad time for corn development, but he still predicts a relatively decent yield this fall."It won’t be a record setter like last year, but it will still be good," he said.As far as soybeans are concerned, Vis said they should be relatively unaffected by the heat wave."It’s still early to tell, but the story will be told in August. We make soybeans in August," he said. "So I have a lot of optimism for soybeans. Even after a drought you can get some really nice beans in August."He said the story with soybeans this year is again the destructive soybean aphid. "It’s a big problem, but we know how to manage it," Vis said. He said this week and next, most soybean producers will spray their fields with pesticides, either by ground application or by air with crop dusting planes."It’s not just a Rock County problem," Vis said. "It’s a regional problem."