Dec 18, 2019
Corn in Argentina 55% Planted, 26% Pollinating, Dryness Worries
Author: Michael Cordonnier/Soybean & Corn Advisor, Inc.
The weather in the northern half of Argentina is OK, but the weather in the southern half of Argentina continues to be worrisome. The weather in southern and western Argentina has been sub-par for several months and it does not look like there is much of a change in the pattern, at least near term.
While the weather in the northern half of Argentina is OK, there are more crops in the southern half of the country than in the northern half, and it is the southern half where the weather is becoming more of a concern. I would guess that approximately 40-45% of the crops in Argentina are at some level of needing a rain, but that is just a preliminary guess.
Additionally, the corn in Argentina is 25-30% pollinating, so some of the corn is going to pollinate under adverse conditions. In parts of Argentina, they are already calling it a drought, but I don't know if I would go that far just yet. Certainly it is abnormally dry, but the soils of Argentina have a very good water holding capacity, so it takes a while to become a full blown drought. Also, we know that corn genetics has improved in recent years to allow the corn to survive short periods of dryness relatively unscathed.
The 2019/20 corn crop in Argentina was 54.7% planted as of late last week compared to 47% last year and 50.2% average according to the Buenos Aires Grain Exchange. This represents an advance of 6% for the week. In the core production areas, the corn is approximately 95% panted with 75% planted in the southern areas and 0% planted in far northern Argentina.
The corn crop is 26% pollinating and the corn is rated 43.1% good to excellent, which is a decline from last week. The soil moisture for the corn is rated 35% short and 12.9% optimum, which is a decline from last week.