Crop Conditions
Corn
Corn rated good / excellent (G/EX) as of September 24 was up 2% at 53% and poor / very poor was down 2% at 18%. Current G/EX is down 10% versus the 10 year average and Poor / Very Poor is up 5% versus the 10 year average. Of the 18 reported states 6 reported better, 9 worse, and 3 unchanged G/EX ratings. The good / excellent ratings for the top producing states were: Iowa 50%(+2%), Illinois 62%(+7%), Nebraska 49%(-1%), Minnesota 40%(-1%), Indiana 63%(-1%).

Soybeans
Soybeans rated good / excellent (G/EX) as of September 24 was down 2% at 50% and poor / very poor was unchanged at 18%. Current G/EX is down 12% versus the 10 year average and Poor / Very Poor is up 6% versus the 10 year average. Of the 18 reported states 4 reported better, 12 worse, and 2 unchanged G/EX ratings. The good / excellent ratings for the top producing states were: Illinois 60%(+6%), Iowa 47%(0%), Minnesota 44%(-2%), Indiana 63%(-1%), Nebraska 45%(-2%).

Cotton
Cotton rated good / excellent (G/EX) as of September 24 was up 1% at 30% and poor / very poor was down 1% at 42%. Current G/EX is down 17% versus the 10 year average and Poor / Very Poor is up 21% versus the 10 year average. Of the 15 reported states 5 reported better, 5 worse, and 5 unchanged G/EX ratings. The good / excellent ratings for the top producing states were: Texas 10%(0%), Georgia 56%(0%), Arkansas 71%(+6%), Mississippi 48%(-8%), North Carolina 48%(+5%).

Crop Progress
Cotton
Cotton harvested as of September 24 was up 4% at 13%. This is down 1% versus last year and up 2% versus the 10 year average. The top producing states report Texas 24%(+4%), Georgia 2%(+2%), Arkansas 4%(+3%), Mississippi 15%(+12%), North Carolina 0%(0%).

Spring Wheat
Spring Wheat harvested as of September 24 was up 3% at 96%. This is unchanged versus last year. The top producing states report North Dakota 95%(+4%), Minnesota 100%(+2%), Montana 95%(+1%), South Dakota 100%(0%), Idaho 93%(+6%).

Winter Wheat
Winter Wheat planted as of September 24 was up 11% at 26%. This is down 4% versus last year and down 3% versus the 10 year average. The top producing states report Kansas 18%(+10%), Washington 52%(+11%), Montana 37%(+20%), Illinois 10%(+2%), Idaho 18%(+5%).

Corn
Corn harvested as of September 24 was up 6% at 15%. This is up 4% versus last year and up 3% versus the 10 year average. The top producing states report Iowa 9%(+4%), Illinois 10%(+4%), Nebraska 15%(+8%), Minnesota 11%(+5%), Indiana 7%(+5%).

Soybeans
Soybeans harvested as of September 24 was up 7% at 12%. This is up 5% versus last year and up 2% versus the 10 year average. The top producing states report Illinois 6%(+5%), Iowa 11%(+8%), Minnesota 19%(+13%), Indiana 7%(+6%), Nebraska 14%(+10%).

This full text file contains reports, issued weekly during the growing season (April to November), which lists planting, fruiting, and harvesting progress and overall condition of selected crops in major producing states. The data, summarized by crop and by state, are republished along with any revisions in the Weekly Weather and Crop Bulletin. During the months of December through March, the report is issued monthly titled State Stories.

These reports offer weekly analysis of the progress and condition of the crops. State-by-state data is provided, which is aggregated into a number that covers the key producing states that make up the majority of the US crop.

Crop Progress is measured by stages and percentage of completion. This includes percent planted, percent harvested, and several stages in between. Some of the stages vary from crop to crop. For example, intermediate stages for corn include emergence, silk, dough, dent, and maturity, while the stages for soybeans include emergence, bloom, setting pods, and dropping leaves. The reports compare the current week with the same period in the previous year and with the 5-year average.

Inclement weather in the spring can delay planting, which could ultimately lower the production for that year. For corn, producers may be forced to pick faster-growing but lower-yielding seed varieties if planting gets delayed. In some cases, they may switch to soybeans, which have a shorter growing season. If it is excessively hot and dry during the corn silking stage, yields could drop, and a delayed start to the season could push silking later in the summer and increase the odds of that happening. A key stage to watch for soybeans in pod-filling, as excessively dry weather during that stage could result in smaller beans and lower yield. If the crops are late, there is an increased chance of frost before the plants have matured, which can also reduce yield.

Crop Conditions are measured by five categories: Excellent, Good, Fair, Poor and Very Poor. As a rule of thumb, analysts tend to focus on the percentage that is in the good and excellent categories (“Good/Excellent”) and to a lesser extent to “Poor/Very Poor.” The reports include data on the current week, the previous week, and a year prior.

Analysts look at the weekly conditions data during the growing season to get an idea on how the crop is performing relative to previous years. If the crop conditions are poor, analysts may want to reduce their production estimates, and vice-versa if the crop conditions are strong. Analysts may also look at individual states’ conditions in light of the weather those areas are experiencing.