What’s up with the U.S. wheat crop? That is a question traders, millers and bakers the world over are asking. While USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service has resumed its weekly Crop Progress and Condition reports, anecdotal evidence from farmers across the country gives an added perspective to the statistics.
Increasingly, those farmers are sharing more and more information through social media channels — blogs, Twitter, Facebook and others. That means no matter where you are in the world, responses to requests for crop conditions, weather outlook or pricing trends are no farther away than the closest screen.
Check out some of USW’s favorite crop resources online this spring as the winter wheat crop emerges and farmers start to plant the spring wheat crop. Fair warning: they “tweet” about much more than just wheat.
Kim Fritzemeir, in Stafford, KS, shares farm updates and recipes on her blog, Kim’s County Line. In her March 17 post (photo below), “Aggie Visits the Wheat State,” she details the growth stages of the wheat and gives a sneak peak at this year’s emerging hard red winter (HRW) crop.
Chris Cullan shares information on wheat in Hemingford, NE, through the Twitter handle @ChrisCullan1. He often shares information from other “Wheaties,” including University of Nebraska-Lincoln wheat breeder Stephen Baenziger (@Huskerwheat). For example, look for their exchange on drought exacerbating freeze damage in some HRW wheat plots on March 9.
Jessica Wilcox also shared a tweet about potential freeze damage in Oklahoma on March 18, saying, “Some blue tint showing up on early conventional till #wheat.” Wilcox tweets from Oklahoma using the handle @jessicawilcoxOK.
Farther north, Farmer Fred and Jane Lukens provide a North Dakota perspective on the U.S. wheat crop and farming operations at @GriggsDakota and on the Griggs Dakota blog. On Feb. 26, they shared how winter weather affects the winter wheat crop: “Ground freezes hardest and deepest in the open where it is unprotected by snow. Snow cover provides a blanket of warmth on the ground. How can that be? After all, snow is pretty cold stuff. Snow is insulation on the land and holds heat in the ground.”
Down south, Wildorado, TX, farmer David Cleavinger has not had the benefit of snow cover. Through his handle @TXWheatFarmer, he shared on March 18, “Not a good day in the neighborhood. #drought2014 hard to handle. #wheat crop not looking good. 50 MPH wind.”
Farther east, Jason Scott, USW Secretary-Treasurer elect, provides perspective from his farm on the Eastern Shore of Maryland at @jescott81. Back in January, Scott tweeted from the USW Board Team travels to Nigeria, Ghana, Italy and Spain and checked in back home to see how his soft red winter (SRW) wheat crop and seed deliveries were going.
Source: USW Market Analyst