As of June 18, with virtually all corn emerged, 67 percent is rated good/excellent, unchanged from last week, according to USDA’s Crop Progress Report. This is behind last year’s good/excellent rating of 75 percent at this point in the growing season. South Dakota continues to be under the gun, with 17 of its corn rated as poor/very poor and less than half in the upper categories.
|
States
|
Corn (percent)
|
Soybeans (percent)
|
|
|
Poor/very poor
|
Good/Excellent
|
Poor/very poor
|
Good/Excellent
|
|
Iowa
|
4
|
78
|
4
|
74
|
|
Kansas
|
7
|
61
|
3
|
67
|
|
Nebraska
|
4
|
78
|
5
|
72
|
|
South Dakota
|
17
|
49
|
16
|
47
|
|
18 States
|
8
|
67
|
7
|
67
|
Soybean planting is nearing completion, at 96 percent – three points ahead of average. Eighty-nine percent of beans have emerged, five points ahead of average. For the 18 states, 73 is rated in the top categories compared to 7 percent at the bottom end. That’s an improvement of one point on the top end and a deterioration of one point on the bottom.
Again, South Dakota’s short soil moisture (see map) puts 16 percent of its bean crop in the lower end of the range and only 47 percent in the top of the range. Portions of the state, as seen on the map, are as much as 80 mm short of average, according to the National Weather Service’s Climate Prediction Center (CPC). However, the CPC’s Seasonal Drought Outlook is for some improvement in the north-central part of the state and dissipation of the drought toward the central part of the state (see map).
Overall, topsoil and subsoil moisture is not much different from last year at this time. For most states, that means a subsoil water bank. In South Dakota, similar ratings for topsoil and subsoil means timely rains will we required to keep the 55 percent that’s short on water going.
|
States
|
Topsoil (percent)
|
Subsoil (percent)
|
|
|
Very short/short
|
Adequate/surplus
|
Very short/short
|
Adequate/surplus
|
|
Iowa
|
27
|
73
|
18
|
82
|
|
Kansas
|
18
|
82
|
9
|
91
|
|
Nebraska
|
37
|
63
|
25
|
75
|
|
South Dakota
|
55
|
45
|
55
|
45
|
|
18 States
|
29
|
72
|
23
|
77
|
Pasture/Range
Good news for beef lovers outside of the upper Grain Plains: USDA’s pasture and range conditions ratings put 63 percent of the nation at the upper end of the range, similar to last year’s 64 percent. Twelve percent is poor/very poor, compared with only 9 percent in the lower end last year. The following maps from CPC tell the story.
