About 3 per cent of the national corn crop is up, a USDA report says
By Diego Flammini
Staff Writer
Farms.com
Corn plants across the U.S. are beginning to emerge.
About 3 per cent of the American corn crop is up, the USDA’s Weekly Weather and Crop Bulletin said on April 28. That figure is up one percentage point from this time in 2019.
On a state level, Texas leads the U.S.
About 52 per cent of the corn in the state has emerged after planting. That number is on par with last year’s progress.
Corn in North Carolina is 40 per cent emerged, Kentucky has 14 per cent of its corn up and 13 per cent of Tennessee’s corn has emerged.
The other major corn states are representing 5 per cent or less emergence.
U.S. farmers continue to plant the 2020 soybean crop.
About 8 per cent of the USDA’s projected 85 million acres, or 6.8 million acres, has been seeded.
That figure represents a 6 per cent increase from last week.
Louisiana farmers have made the most progress, reporting 33 per cent of their soybeans are in the ground.
Growers there planted about 44 million acres of soybeans in 2019.
Farmers in Mississippi are next with 30 per cent of their soybeans planted, followed by Kentucky and Illinois at 18 per cent each.
The remaining major soybean states are reporting 12 per cent or less planting progress.
America’s winter wheat crop is heading.
About 21 per cent of the crop is in this stage, the USDA reported. U.S. producers planted more than 30 million winter wheat acres in 2019.
Winter wheat in Texas is the farthest along.
The crop in that state is 68 per cent headed, up from about 57 per cent last year.
Wheat in Arkansas is 62 per cent headed, followed by California at 55 per cent. North Carolina and Oklahoma are reach reporting 50 per cent winter wheat heading.
The USDA will release its next Weekly Weather and Crop Bulletin on May 5.
Farms.com has reached out to U.S. farmers for comment.