Crop Report Suggests Tough Season for Winter Wheat

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has released its first crop progress report of 2018.

This early look at the growing season tells us that the winter wheat crop is off to a tough start.

Among the top 18 winter wheat production states, which account for 90 percent of the nation’s acreage, only 32 percent of the crop is in good to excellent condition. That compares to 51 percent a year ago.

A few Midwestern states have been able to buck that trend, including Michigan, where 65 percent of the crop is good to excellent, and Ohio, where 75 percent falls in that category. The nation’s western winter wheat production also significantly exceeds nationwide good-to-excellent average ratings.

USDA’s crop progress report also has preliminary information on planting for some key southern row crops, including cotton and rice.

Southern sorghum planting has also begun in Louisiana (10 percent complete) and Texas (42 percent), with the nationwide progress now at 9 percent. That’s slightly behind the five-year average of 11 percent.

Cotton planting is only 7 percent complete, with 11 percent of the Texas crop and 23 percent of the Arizona crop now in the ground. That pace is tracking ahead of the five-year average of 3 percent.

Source: Farm Futures