Dec 27, 2021
Drought Delays Final Soybean Planting in Rio Grande do Sul
Author: Michael Cordonnier/Soybean & Corn Advisor, Inc.
Farmers in Rio Grande do Sul in southern Brazil made little progress in finishing the planting of their 2021/22 soybeans last week due to dry conditions. Emater reported that 92% of the soybeans had been planted as of late last week and that 5% had started to flower. Soybean growth is reported to be slow and the plants are smaller than normal.
In the driest areas there are still about 20% of the soybeans left to plant and farmers are not going to plant until they receive additional moisture. Some of the soybeans will need to be replanted due to poor germination and poor early growth. Additionally, farmers only have until December 31st to plant their soybeans if they want to qualify for crop insurance.
In the municipality of Frederico Westphalen in northwestern Rio Grande do Sul, hot and dry conditions have kept farmers from finishing their soybean planting and the recent light and scattered showers did not resolve the problem. The soybeans are 13% flowering and farmers in the municipality fear they have already lost at least 10% of the yield potential.
The state has suffered under dry conditions since early November and the forecast continues to be worrisome. Recent rains have generally been light and scattered and not enough to relieve the moisture stress.
Rio Grande do Sul is responsible for approximately 15% of Brazil's soybean acreage and the one good thing in the state is that the soybeans are not in their critical pod filling phase, but significant rainfall needs to return to the state as soon as possible if additional losses are to be avoided.