Planting of the 2015 U.S. hard red spring wheat crop is nearly completed with 94 percent planted as of Sunday. This is up from 87 percent the previous week, and double the level of 2014 and also well ahead of the five year average of 65 percent. Planting in Minnesota and South Dakota is essentially completed, with Montana at 95 percent complete and North Dakota 90 percent.
More than two-thirds of the U.S. crop has emerged, double the typical level for mid-May. Cool soil temperatures and the recent trend of cooler than normal air temperatures has made for a little longer time between planting and crop emergence in some areas.
The first condition rating for the crop was released this week, and 65 percent of the crop is rated good to excellent. The highest ratings are in North Dakota where 72 percent is rated good to excellent, followed by Montana at 64 percent, Minnesota at 55 percent and South Dakota at 42 percent.
The region as a whole has received some very timely precipitation over the last week to ten days, but some areas have received excessive precipitation. In addition, record to near record overnight low temperatures have also prevailed across the region in the last couple of days, raising concern about potential crop damage to some of the crop, although wheat is generally less susceptible to frost compared to other crops, at this stage of development. The crop would certainly benefit from a period of warmer temperatures, and central and eastern parts of the four state region from a drier weather pattern.
The northern U.S. durum crop continues to progress ahead of normal for planting. In North Dakota, 71 percent of the crop has been planted, compared to just 12 percent a year ago and one-third for a five-year average. In Montana, 96 percent has been planted, compared to 45 percent last year and 53 percent for a five-year average. Approximately one-fourth of the North Dakota crop and one-third of the Montana crop has emerged.
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