Weekly Wheat Update

Every Tuesday during the growing season (generally April through September), the North Dakota Wheat Commission issues a weekly wheat report report to update buyers on growing conditions, yield potential, crop health, disease concerns, quality, etc. The Commission utilizes the USDA NASS weekly crop progress reports and crop reports from producers, elevators, extension agents and agronomists to develop the report.

Weekly Wheat Update June 15, 2021

Much of the state received precipitation over the weekend which was very much appreciated. Some areas saw as much as 3-4 inches or more, while more widespread amounts were in the ½ inch to 2-inch range. There was some isolated damage from high winds and hail. The precipitation improved soil moisture levels some, with topsoil moisture levels in the state rated as 38 percent adequate to surplus and 30 percent of the subsoil moisture was in that range. The moisture was very beneficial for some of the later planted crop and helped stabilize crop conditions in areas, but producers report more consistent precipitation will be needed due to the longevity of the dry conditions. Unfortunately, the rain came too late for some areas of the state and some of the wheat and other small grains will be abandoned. There is some decent looking wheat in the state, but much of the state’s wheat has seen adverse yield implications from the weather conditions. A good article on this topic can be found here: https://www.ag.ndsu.edu/cpr/soils/how-heat-and-water-stress-effects-wheat-plants-in-vegetative-stages-06-10-21

The majority of the spring wheat has emerged. The effects of the hot, dry conditions on wheat development can be seen in the percent headed numbers released in the USDA Crop Progress report on June 14. Producers report spring wheat is heading out much earlier than normal and the growth of the plants is stunted. Nationwide, 8 percent has headed out compared to 6 percent on average. In South Dakota, almost half has headed out compared to only 26 percent on average and in Minnesota 19 percent has headed out compared to 6 percent on average. In Montana and North Dakota only 1-2 percent has headed out. Condition ratings dropped slightly this week with 37 percent of the U.S. spring wheat crop rated in good to excellent condition, compared to 81 percent a year ago. Crop conditions remain lowest in North and South Dakota where the drought effects have been the most severe. In North Dakota 29 percent of the spring wheat crop is rated in good to excellent condition and almost a third is rated in poor to very poor condition.
Durum conditions in North Dakota remain slightly more favorable than spring wheat due to more timely precipitation. However, producers emphasize that consistent moisture throughout the rest of the growing season will be needed to carry the crop to harvest due to dry soil conditions. The hot temperatures have also likely taken some yield off of the durum crop. Emergence remains a bit slow with 78 percent of the durum emerged, compared to near 90 percent on average. Condition ratings improved slightly compared to last week with 54 percent of North Dakota’s durum rated in good to excellent condition.

Wheat Emerged by State	6/13/21	Last Week	Last Year	5 yr. Avg
ND Spring	94	87	94	90
ND Durum	78	65	92	91
Minnesota	100	100	97	98
Montana	96	87	94	90
South Dakota	99	97	99	98
U.S.	96	90	93	95

As of June 13, 2021

Wheat Headed by State	6/13/21	Last Week	Last Year	5 yr. Avg
ND Spring	2	0	1	3
ND Durum	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a
Minnesota	19	0	2	6
Montana	1	0	1	1
South Dakota	45	17	19	26
U.S.	8	0	4	6

As of June 13, 2021

Current Crop Condition by State	Very Poor	Poor	Fair	Good	Excellent	Overall
ND Spring 6/13/21	14 13	20 16	37 39	27 30	2 2	283 292
ND Durum 6/13/21	4 4	13 11	28 33	46 41	9 11	343 344
Minnesota 6/13/21	1 0	8 4	23 24	56 56	12 16	370 384
Montana 6/13/21	3 3	13 15	34 35	47 46	3 1	334 327
South Dakota 6/13/21	8 7	18 26	57 51	17 16	0 0	283 276
U.S. 6/13/21	9 9	18 16	36 37	34 35	3 3	304 307

As of June 13, 2021