Winter wheat crop development lagging
Farm and Ranch May 19, 2010 Some areas in the Pacific Northwest would like rain for the cereal crops but the latest Weekly Crop Weather Reports from states in the region indicate the recent warm temperatures were welcome to aid in crop development. The cool spring has meant slow crop development and the heading of the winter wheat crop is lagging behind average. In Oregon three percent of the winter wheat was headed to start the week compared to a five year average for now of 12 percent. Washington’s crop is five percent headed compared to 15 percent on average. No heading was reported in Idaho where the five year average for now is two percent. Winter wheat in the PNW continues to be rated in mostly good to excellent condition and USDA meteorologist Brad Rippey says nationally the crop remains in good shape. Rippey: “The crop remains almost two-thirds good to excellent, 66%. Same as a week ago. Much better than last year‘s crop rated 48% good to excellent. No change really but the condition problems we do see are in the soft red winter wheat belt, Illinois, Missouri and North Carolina. All those crops are close to or approaching near 25 to 30% in the very poor to poor range as we head pretty deep into the season for that part of the country.” USDA reports 79 percent of the U.S. spring wheat crop has been planted, just about on par with the five year average. Planting of the U.S. corn crop is ten points head of average with 87 percent of the crop seeded. I’m Bob Hoff and that’s the Northwest Farm and Ranch Report on Northwest Aginfo Net.
