Based on August 1 conditions, barley production in Wyoming is forecast at 6.96 million bushels, according to the Mountain Regional Field Office of the National Agricultural Statistics Service, USDA. This forecast is up 4 percent from the July 1 forecast and up 3 percent from last year’s crop. The area for harvest in 2015, at 65,000 acres, is up 2,000 acres from the 63,000 acres harvested last year. Barley yield is forecast at 107.0 bushels per acre, up 4.0 bushels from the July forecast and even with last year. As of August 2, Wyoming’s barley crop condition was rated 5 percent fair, 67 percent good, and 28 percent excellent. Barley mature was 34 percent complete, compared with 47 percent last year and the 5-year average of 49 percent.
Wyoming farmers and ranchers expect to harvest 490,000 acres of alfalfa hay this year, unchanged from 2014. They also expect to harvest 560,000 acres of other hay in 2015, down 10,000 acres from last year. Alfalfa production is forecast at 1.47 million tons, up 15 percent from 1.27 million tons produced in 2014. Other hay production is estimated at 840,000 tons, down 13 percent from 969,000 tons a year ago. Yields are expected to average 3.00 tons per acre for alfalfa and 1.50 tons per acre for other hay, compared to last year’s yields of 2.60 tons per acre for alfalfa hay and 1.70 tons for other hay.
Dry bean production for 2015 is forecast at 590,000 hundredweight, down 26 percent from the 799,000 hundredweight produced a year earlier. Yields are expected to average 2,000 pounds per acre, down from 2,130 pounds per acre last year. Growers expect to harvest 29,500 acres this year, down 8,100 acres from 37,600 acres last year. Sugarbeet production is forecast at 958,000 tons, up 15 percent from 834,000 tons produced in 2014. Growers expect to harvest 30,800 acres this year compared with 30,000 a year ago. Yields are expected to average 31.1 tons per acre, up from 27.8 tons per acre a year ago.
Source - http://www.theprairiestar.com
