NAPERVILLE, Illinois, Aug 7 (Reuters) - Many of the U.S. Crop Watch corn and soybean fields were stressed last week under mostly dry conditions, but multiple rounds of rain over the weekend prevented yield expectations from declining.
Crop Watch condition and yield scores, especially for corn, had fallen considerably in the previous week with July’s hot and dry finish, but this week’s stabilization and a favorable forecast for the days ahead may keep these scores steady or rising.
Along with scattered rain chances covering much of the Corn Belt, this week’s normal to cooler temperatures will be helpful for the filling of corn kernels.
Soybeans can still greatly benefit from rains over the next few weeks, but rain’s impact on corn is starting to lessen. Crop Watch producers in Kansas and Nebraska report that rain can no longer help the non-irrigated corn fields, though the corn in southeastern Illinois may have another week or two.
Last week’s Crop Watch rain totals were mostly concentrated over the weekend, though not all areas received the needed soaking. Southeastern Illinois picked up a quarter-inch of rain, making it four straight weeks of minimal-to-no rain. Soybeans in North Dakota received just 0.2 inch, though the corn fared better at 1.4 inches.
More than 3 inches of rain were observed in South Dakota, Nebraska, western Iowa and western Illinois, and Indiana picked up 2 inches. Less than an inch fell in Ohio, Kansas and eastern Iowa, and up to 1.5 inches were tallied in Minnesota, though the latter two producers noted heavy dews helped keep crops stable.
YIELD AND CONDITIONS
The 11-field average corn yield score rose to 3.89 from 3.84 last week as quarter-point improvements in North Dakota, Nebraska, western Iowa and Indiana offset a half-point drop in southeastern Illinois. The new score is very similar to the producers’ views in the same weeks in 2021 and 2022.
Crop Watch producers have been rating both crop conditions and yield potential on 1-to-5 scales. The condition scores are a primarily visual assessment similar to the U.S. government’s where 1 is very poor, 3 is average and 5 is excellent.
Yield potential extends to non-visible elements and may vary from condition. On this scale, 3 is around farm average yield, 4 is solidly above average and 5 is among the best crops ever.
Average corn condition fell very slightly to 3.93 from 3.95 last week on half-point reductions in Minnesota and southeastern Illinois and quarter-point bumps in North Dakota, Nebraska and Indiana.
Producers feel better about soybean yield prospects versus corn, especially given the impact August rains can have on the beans. The 11-field average soybean yield rose to 4.11 from 4.09 last week as quarter-point cuts in North Dakota and southeastern Illinois were outweighed by quarter-point rises in Indiana, western Iowa and Nebraska.
The soybean yield score of 4.11 is notably better than at this point in the last two years. For example, the western Iowa producer this week described his beans as phenomenal while the Ohio field was said to look incredible. However, the eastern Iowa producer said his beans could use more rain and sunshine.
Average soybean condition was unchanged this week at 4.07 as quarter-point increases in Nebraska and western Iowa offset a half-point reduction in southeastern Illinois.
The following are the states and counties of the 2023 Crop Watch corn and soybean fields: Kingsbury, South Dakota; Freeborn, Minnesota; Burt, Nebraska; Rice, Kansas; Audubon, Iowa; Cedar, Iowa; Warren, Illinois; Crawford, Illinois; Tippecanoe, Indiana; Fairfield, Ohio. The North Dakota corn is in Griggs County and the soybeans are in Stutsman County.
Photos of the Crop Watch fields can be tracked on my Twitter feed using handle @kannbwx. Karen Braun is a market analyst for Reuters. Views expressed above are her own. (Writing by Karen Braun Editing by Matthew Lewis)
