Conditions in the U.S. Crop Watch corn and soybean fields took a relatively large hit over the last week amid hot, humid weather accompanied by scarce rainfall.
That dropped corn yield expectations as well, though the Crop Watch producers felt soybean yield potential was hurt less by the recent stretch of unfavorable weather.
Almost every Crop Watch producer reported rain needs are becoming urgent, though this week holds mixed chances for the core Corn Belt states. U.S. forecasters as of Sunday afternoon predicted the area would be predominantly cool and possibly wetter than normal starting next week.
Temperatures will not be as warm as last week, though they may remain a little warmer than normal in the western belt.
Over the last week, the Indiana location received 1.5 inches of rain and Ohio got between 1 and 2 inches. Western Illinois tallied 0.8 inch and 0.35 inch fell in both Minnesota and eastern Iowa.
North and South Dakota had a tenth or two of rain over the last week, but nothing was observed in Nebraska, Kansas, western Iowa and southeastern Illinois. Southeastern Illinois has accumulated just 0.4 inch in the last three weeks, and North Dakota has been similarly dry.
SCORE REDUCTIONS
The 11-field, average Crop Watch corn condition fell to 3.95 from 4.16 last week, the largest weekly cut in eight weeks. That included quarter-point improvements in North Dakota and Indiana, but corn condition fell a full point in Kansas after a week of extreme temperatures over 100 degrees Fahrenheit.
Corn condition shed a half-point in southeastern Illinois and Minnesota, and quarter-point losses were observed in South Dakota, Nebraska and western Iowa.
The new corn condition average is similar to the mid-June levels but a touch lower than in the same weeks in 2021 and 2022.
Average Crop Watch corn yield potential fell to 3.84 from 4.02 last week, also slightly lower than at the same point in the last two years. A half-point increase in Indiana was easily offset by three-quarter-point cuts in Kansas and southeastern Illinois, and quarter-point drops in South Dakota, Minnesota, Nebraska and western Iowa.
The 11-field soybean condition score declined to 4.07 from 4.2 last week, but the revised score is better than during mid-to-late June and slightly better than in the same weeks in 2021 and 2022.
The Kansas soybeans notched a full-point condition cut, southeastern Illinois fell by a half-point and a quarter-point decline was observed in Nebraska. Western Illinois beans received a quarter-point bump.
Average soybean yield potential underwent the smallest reduction of the week, falling to 4.09 from 4.16 last week after a half-point drop in Kansas and quarter-point slides in Minnesota, Nebraska and southeastern Illinois were partially offset by quarter-point rises in western Illinois and Indiana.
Eight of the 11 corn fields carry a yield potential score of 4 or higher, though the other three - Minnesota, North Dakota and Nebraska - are in the 2-range. The same eight fields are 4 or higher on soy yield, but 3 is forecast for North Dakota and Nebraska, and Minnesota is expecting 2.75.
Crop Watch producers have been rating crop conditions and yield potential on 1-to-5 scales. The condition scores are a primarily visual assessment similar to the U.S. government’s where 1 is very poor, 3 is average and 5 is excellent.
Yield potential extends to non-visible elements and may vary from condition. On this scale, 3 is around farm average yield, 4 is solidly above average and 5 is among the best crops ever.
The following are the states and counties of the 2023 Crop Watch corn and soybean fields: Kingsbury, South Dakota; Freeborn, Minnesota; Burt, Nebraska; Rice, Kansas; Audubon, Iowa; Cedar, Iowa; Warren, Illinois; Crawford, Illinois; Tippecanoe, Indiana; Fairfield, Ohio. The North Dakota corn is in Griggs County and the soybeans are in Stutsman County.
Source - https://www.reuters.com
