Dec 18, 2019
Dry Weather in Southern Half of Argentina Becoming Worrisome
Author: Michael Cordonnier/Soybean & Corn Advisor, Inc.
The weather in Argentina is becoming much more worrisome especially in the southern half of the country. Rainfall in most of the southern locations has been below normal for several months and the forecast is calling for a continuation of the dry pattern. Some farmers in the dryer areas of Argentina have stopped planting their soybeans due to a lack of soil moisture and the fact that there is not much rain in the forecast. This is especially the case for the double crop soybeans.
The 2019/20 Argentina soybeans were 61.3% planted as of late last week compared to 69% last year and 67% average according to the Buenos Aires Grain Exchange. This represents an advance of 12% for the week. The planting of the full-season soybeans is 7.3% slower than last year and the double crop planting is 14.8% slower than last year. The slowdown in planting is the result of dry conditions especially in the southern and western parts of Argentina.
In the core production areas, the soybeans are 85-90% planted. In the southern locations, the soybeans are approximately 40-60% planted with 5-10% planted in far northern Argentina. The majority of the soybeans are in vegetative development with 4% starting to flower. The soybeans are rated 62% good to excellent, which is a decline from last week. The soil moisture for the soybeans is rated 14.8% short and 26.6% optimum, which is a decline from last week