Despite the wettest spring in a quarter century, U.S. farmers sowed nearly 6 percent more corn and 5 percent fewer soybeans than expected during a cold and muddy planting season, said the USDA, based on a survey of 68,100 growers during the first two weeks of June. The annual Acreage report usually provides a definitive picture of crops, but excessive rain slowed field work so much that the USDA said it will re-survey the Midwest this month and would revise its acreage data, if need be, in its August crop report.
Overall, USDA estimated 309 million acres were planted to the two dozen “principal” crops, ranging from corn, wheat, soybeans, cotton and rice to millet and dry edible beans, a sharp drop of 10 million acres from 2018. Growers planted 91.7 million acres of corn and 80 million acres of soybeans, the two most widely grown crops. Analysts expected a much smaller corn area, 86.9 million acres, and much larger soybean plantings, 84.5 million acres. Soybeans are a revenue-making alternative to corn as the season progresses and likely corn yields begin to fall.
If correct, soybean acreage would be the smallest since 2013. The corn acreage would be up 3 percent from last year. Based on USDA projections of yields and and shrinkage in acreage between planting and harvest, the corn crop would be 13.8-13.9 billon bushels, the smallest in four years, and the soybean crop would be 4.1-4.2 billion bushels, also the smallest in four years and breaking a string of three record soy crops in a row.
Wheat sowings of 45.6 million acres are the lowest since USDA began recording the data in 1919.
“For the lower 48 states, it was the sixth-wettest spring during the 125-year period of record,” said the USDA, citing information from the National Centers for Environmental Information. “With an average of 9.85 inches, 124 percent of normal, it was the nation’s wettest Spring since 1995, when 9.92 inches fell.” It also was the coolest spring since 2013.
The USDA said it will collect new information on corn, cotton, sorghum and soybean plantings in 14 states during July. “Excessive rainfall had prevented planting at the time of the (Acreage) survey, leaving a portion of acres still to be planted for corn in Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, New York, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin; cotton in Arkansas; sorghum in Kansas; and soybeans in Arkansas, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, New York, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin,” said the National Agricultural Statistics Service.
The Acreage report is available here.