The condition of the Kansas winter wheat crop managed to improve this past week, amid stormy central Plains weather that brought both high winds and much-needed moisture. However, the condition of the Oklahoma crop went backward.
A state crop progress report pegged the crop in the No. 1 winter wheat production state of Kansas at 49% good to excellent as of Sunday. That is up a single point from a week earlier but lags 53% last year. Meanwhile, topsoil moisture in the state was rated 55% adequate to surplus as of Sunday, a 2-point improvement from the previous week and on par with a year ago.
On the other hand, the crop in Oklahoma was rated just 37% good to excellent as of Sunday, a 9-point fall from a week earlier and far below 70% last year.
Storms last week buffeted portions of the central Plains with extreme winds. However, some areas also saw significant precipitation which benefited crops.
The Oklahoma report noted extreme winds, lack of rainfall, and wildfires across much of the state, “resulting in reduced soil moisture and crop conditions.”
In Colorado, 66% of the winter wheat crop was reported in good to excellent condition as of Sunday, up 6 points from the previous week and near 68% last year. The Texas crop was 31% good to excellent as of Sunday, a 3-point improvement from the previous week but 20 points below a year ago.
The longer-term outlook for US Hard Red Winter is dicey, with NOAA’s spring forecast indicating drier- and warmer-than-normal conditions for the southern tier of the nation. Meanwhile, a report Tuesday from World Weather warned that drought is likely to worsen in the Texas and Oklahoma Panhandles, western Oklahoma, southwestern Kansas, and southeastern Colorado.
Some of the more northern HRW production regions are dry as well, although World Weather said some relief should come for those areas in the next couple of weeks.
