After a rainy and sometimes snowy week which helped recharge topsoil moisture, Iowa farmers are ready and eager to get a good start on planting corn. And it appears field conditions over much of the state are ready for the planters to roll, farmers and agronomists said last week.

"The ground is working up beautifully," said Chris Prizler, Iowa County Farm Bureau president, who farms with his father near Williamsburg. "We aren’t in a big hurry to get started planting, but things really do look pretty good right now."

Ben Bader, a Black Hawk County Farm Bureau member, agreed that field conditions look nearly ideal for planting, which is a...