Upper Midwest planting may start early, South too wet

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) expects planting to start early in the northern U.S. Corn Belt, but seeding is behind schedule in the southern areas.
A dry winter has contributed to the northern outlook, while wet conditions have persisted in the South.
"I would expect planting to go a little better in the upper Midwest this spring than it will in the Ohio River Valley," said Brad Rippey, a meteorologist with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, according to a report.
In Texas, farmers often can begin planting by late February, but as of March 15, only 11 percent of the state’s corn crop was seeded. That’s down from the five-year average of 25 percent.
"As of mid-March we haven't seen a single acre of rice or corn planted in Louisiana," Rippey said. "That is behind the five-year average."
Meanwhile, drought conditions are being monitored in the northern Corn Belt in places like Minnesota and the Dakotas.
Steve Baun, a hydrologist for the National Weather Service’s North Central River Forecast Center in Minnesota, said this winter “rivals 2012, which was a very low flow year on the Mississippi River.”
The federal Climate Prediction Center said severe drought pressure in Western states “is also likely to continue in parts of the southern Plains” this spring.
“Forecasters say drought improvement or removal is favored for some areas in the Southwest, southern Rockies, southern Plains and Gulf Coast, while drought development is more likely in parts of the northern Plains, upper Mississippi Valley and western Great Lakes where recent dryness and an outlook of favored below-average precipitation exist," the agency said.

More farmers using technology for efficient planting

Farmers are increasingly using global positioning, computers and other electronics to help them make the most of seed, fertilizer and other critical inputs during planting season, according to reports.
“Precision [agriculture] technology helps growers get more acres planted within their window of opportunity,” said George Huber of Trimble Navigation. “Precision ag will allow them to plant 24 hours a day if they choose.”
Other reasons for adapting the technology include environmental stewardship, the desire for traceability and lower production costs. “The current economic times demand lowering the risks of growing a crop, and this is an excellent time to invest in the tools of precision agriculture,” said Huber. Larger operations, he said, will benefit from the increased efficiency of using computer technology to spread effective management over more acres.

US farmers respond to world demand, planting report shows

USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service recently released its 2010 Prospective Plantings report showing U.S. corn acreage at 88.8 million, up 3% from both 2009 and 2008. Ron Gray, Illinois corn farmer and former president of Illinois Corn Marketing Board, said “We continue to hear our Administration’s emphasis to expand U.S. agricultural exports. This acreage increase reflects America’s capacity to meet the domestic market demand as well as sustain U.S. market share around the world at a competitive price. Exports are a crucial component to the U.S. economy."
The USDA report also said current corn stocks are at 7.69 billion bushels, up 11% over the same time last year.
Matt Hartwig of the Renewable Fuels Association, highlighted some portions of the report related to ethanol:
"Acreage for all major crops hasn't increased — incremental needs for ethanol are being met through crop switching and not land use change.
Corn in storage at this point in the year is at its highest level since 1987, a year in which an all-time record surplus of corn was recorded.
The amount of corn currently stored on farms (4.6 billion bushels) is larger than the amount of corn that is expected to be processed into ethanol in 2009/2010 (4.2 billion bushels).
At 7.7 billion bushels, the total amount of corn in storage (on farms and in off-farm locations) is larger than the total amounts of corn harvested annually as recently as the early 1990s."