Midwest crop conditions dip as wheat struggles persist

Apr 23, 2024

By Farms.com

This week, the agricultural spotlight is on the declining health of winter wheat in Kansas and Oklahoma, with both states observing notable reductions in crop conditions. In Oklahoma, good to excellent ratings for winter wheat have dropped from 60% to 49% in just one week. Kansas has experienced a similar decline, with ratings falling from 43% to 36% good to excellent.

The corn planting season is advancing, with Oklahoma reaching 34% planted, a notable increase over both last year and the five-year average. Kansas's corn planting is also progressing well at 26%, slightly ahead of previous metrics.

Despite the downturn in wheat conditions, livestock health in Oklahoma has shown improvement, with 70% rated good to excellent. This is an increase from previous weeks and suggests some resilience in this sector.

Pasture and range conditions are also a concern, with Oklahoma's good to excellent ratings holding steady at 42%, but still significantly better than last year’s dismal 13%.

Further south in Texas, winter wheat conditions are similarly challenging, with a slight decrease in good to excellent ratings. Corn emergence in Texas is consistent with previous years, supporting a cautiously optimistic view for this staple crop.

As planting continues and summer approaches, these metrics will be essential for farmers and market analysts alike to gauge the potential impact on both local and national agricultural markets. The coming weeks will be critical for assessing whether these trends will stabilize or continue their downward trajectory.

Video: A chain harrow is a game changer

Utilizing a rotational grazing method on our farmstead with our sheep helps to let the pasture/paddocks rest. We also just invested in a chain harrow to allow us to drag the paddocks our sheep just left to break up and spread their manure around, dethatch thicker grass areas, and to rough up bare dirt areas to all for a better seed to soil contact if we overseed that paddock. This was our first time really using the chain harrow besides initially testing it out. We are very impressed with the work it did and how and area that was majority dirt, could be roughed up before reseeding.

Did you know we also operate a small business on the homestead. We make homemade, handcrafted soaps, shampoo bars, hair and beard products in addition to offering our pasture raised pork, lamb, and 100% raw honey. You can find out more about our products and ingredients by visiting our website at www.mimiandpoppysplace.com. There you can shop our products and sign up for our monthly newsletter that highlights a soap or ingredient, gives monthly updates about the homestead, and also lists the markets, festivals, and events we’ll be attending that month.