Jul 02, 2019
2019 U.S. Crop Conditions Hold Steady at Low Level
Author: Michael Cordonnier/Soybean & Corn Advisor, Inc.
Corn - The 2019 U.S. corn condition was unchanged last week at 56% rated good to excellent. Nine states indicated that the corn condition improved last week while 7 states indicated that the corn condition declined and two states were unchanged. The improvements were found mostly in the western Corn Belt while the declines were found mostly in the eastern Corn Belt. The top five rated corn states are: Tennessee, Colorado, North Dakota, Kentucky, and a tie between Nebraska, Pennsylvania, and Texas. The five lowest rated corn states are: Missouri, Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, and Illinois.
I was a little surprised that the corn condition was unchanged last week. I thought the hotter and dryer weather would get the crop up and growing and looking better. The hot and humid weather forecasted for this week should allow for the corn to take up some nitrogen and turn a darker green color. Therefore, the corn condition might improve a little next week.
Soybeans - The 2019 U.S. soybean condition was unchanged last week at 54% rated good to excellent. Eight states indicated that the soybean condition improved last week and 9 states indicated that the soybean condition declined last week with 1 state unchanged. There was not a well-defined pattern this week for the improvements or the declines. The top five rated soybean states are: Tennessee, Kentucky, Nebraska, Arkansas, and North Dakota. The five lowest rated soybean states are: Ohio, Indiana, Missouri, Michigan, and Illinois.
I was also a little surprised that the soybean condition was unchanged last week. The soybean crop will probably improve a little next week with the forecast of hot and humid weather.
Soil Moisture - The nation's soil moisture got dryer last week with only four states indicating that the soils got wetter last week and 14 states indicating that the soil moisture got dryer. Most of the wetter conditions were found in the Delta as well as Minnesota, while most of the dryer conditions were found all across the Corn Belt. The five states with the wettest soils are: Kansas, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Ohio. The five states with the driest soils are: North Carolina, Louisiana, North Dakota, Arkansas, and Nebraska.
The warmer and dryer weather last week allowed for the soils to dry out somewhat. Normally at this time of the year, hotter and dryer conditions would be detrimental for the crops, but this is not a normal year. One week of hotter and dryer conditions are beneficial for the crops this year. Two weeks of hotter and dryer conditions would probably be neutral, and three weeks of hotter and dry conditions would be detrimental for the crops.