The Louisiana soybean crop leads the nation
By Diego Flammini
Staff Writer
Farms.com
The 2018 U.S. soybean crop is almost onto its next stage of development.
About 84 percent of soybean acres have set pods, the USDA’s Weekly Weather and Crop Bulletin report says. That number is up from 75 percent last week and is ahead of the five-year average of 72 percent.
Only soybeans in Louisiana have finished podding.
Soybean fields in Arkansas, Illinois, Mississippi and Minnesota are at least 90 percent podded, the USDA says.
In North Carolina, soybeans are only 54 percent podded, which is the lowest among the 18 prime producing states.
The USDA ranked 66 percent of the U.S. soybean crop as good to excellent.
Corn
The corn crop across America continue to dent.
About 26 percent of corn fields are in the dent stage, the USDA says. That figure is up from 12 percent last week and is further along than the 13 percent five-year average.
On a state level, corn in Texas is 79 percent dented, which is the highest among the 18 documented states.
Corn in Colorado is only 3 percent dented. That number is the lowest in the country.
The USDA ranked 70 percent of the 2018 corn crop as good to excellent.
Wheat
Combines continue to roll through U.S. spring wheat fields.
Farmers have harvested about 35 percent of the 2018 spring wheat crop. That number is up from 13 percent last week and ahead of the five-year average of 27 percent, the USDA says.
Producers in South Dakota have harvested 80 percent of their spring wheat. That figure is the highest of the six primary producing states.
Farmers in Idaho have combined 24 percent of their spring wheat crop, which is the lowest recorded progress in the country.
The USDA ranked 75 percent of the total spring wheat crop as good to excellent.
Winter wheat harvest is almost finished.
U.S. producers have harvested 94 percent of winter wheat acres, the USDA says. That figure is up from 90 percent last week but down from the five-year average of 96 percent.
Farmers in Arkansas, Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Missouri, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma and Texas are finished with winter wheat harvest.
Growers in Montana have completed 67 percent of their winter wheat harvest. That number is the lowest among the 18 primary producing states.
Suitable fieldwork days
Farmers in Oregon, California, Nevada, Arizona and Montana experienced seven suitable fieldwork days for the week ending Aug. 12.
During that same week, the states with the fewest suitable days for fieldwork were:
Pennsylvania and Connecticut – 4
Vermont – 4.1
Ohio, West Virginia and North Carolina – 4.3
Weekly precipitation levels
State | Precipitation (inches) | Weather Station |
Illinois | 3.13 | Chicago/O’Hare |
Indiana | 2.53 | South Bend |
Iowa | 3.77 | Waterloo |
Kentucky | 1.91 | Jackson |
Michigan | 1.02 | Lansing |
Missouri | 1.45 | Saint Louis |
New York | 2.60 | Binghamton |
Pennsylvania | 1.62 | Pittsburgh |
Tennessee | 1.55 | Nashville |
The next Weekly Weather and Crop Bulletin will be released Aug. 21.