Corn sweat adds to high humidity in summer

High humidity has been hard to avoid recently and farmers out in the field face more of it from the crops they tend. Those with an agriculture background are likely familiar with "corn sweat" which describes the extreme humidity produced by plants in the summer.

Like many other crops and plants, corn "sweats" to cool itself in a process called transpiration. Excessive exposure to heat and sun is damaging to plants so they release water through leaves and stems to cool off. As this water evaporates it takes heat energy with it; this is exactly why you feel cooler after sweating too.

In corn fields where stalks can easily soar higher than the farmers, the humidity from transpiration can increase the apparent temperature locally by 5 to 10 degrees, and winds can carry some of this moisture outside of the fields too. Drought may help mitigate this process somewhat as plants are more reluctant to lose water in dry conditions.