8-22-2008 09:00 Pro Farmer pegs US corn crop at 12.152 bln bushels
CHICAGO, Aug 22 (Reuters) - Farm newsletter Pro Farmer on
Friday pegged U.S. corn production this year at 12.152 billion
bushels, and the soybean crop at 2.930 billion bushels, after
this week's tour of top crop producing states in the Midwest.
Pro Farmer estimated the average corn yield at 153.3
bushels per acre, and the average soybean yield at 39.95
bushels per acre. The U.S. Agriculture Department in August
forecast the 2008 U.S. corn crop at 12.288 billion bushels and
soybean production at 2.973 billion bushels.
((Reporting by Karl Plume and Mark Weinraub; writing by K.T.
Arasu; ktarasu@thomsonreuters.com; + 1 312 408 8749))
Keywords: US MIDWEST/TOUR
US Crop Tour: Late Plantings Weigh On Indiana Corn, Soy
WILLIAMSPORT, Ind. (Dow Jones)--Indiana corn and soybean crops
were improved from what was seen Monday in Ohio, but late
plantings and dry soils remain an issue, said scouts on one route
of the eastern leg of the 2008 Pro Farmer Midwest Crop Tour.
Corn yields on one route northeast of Indianapolis have ranged
from 61 to 209 bushels per acre, scouts said Tuesday. The tour
participants said the crop was further along than in Ohio, but was
still behind schedule.
"The early wetness has affected it a lot," said a veteran tour
scout and eastern Illinois farmer.
Corn sampled in Clinton County, southeast of Lafayette, was
showing stress from recent dry weather and nitrogen loss.
A crop adjuster for John Deere on the tour said although the yield
was estimated at 163 bushels, the end result for that field would
likely be less because of nitrogen loss.
"This is bad for this time of year," he said. "It's too early for
this crop to be out of nitrogen."
The nitrogen loss stems from heavy rains in the spring, he said.
Excess water can leach nitrogen fertilizer from the soil.
Soybean plants were much taller than scouts saw Monday in Ohio,
but pod counts were lower than expected, scouts said.
A field in Warren County along the Illinois border had tall plants
and lots of pods per plant, but only six plants in a three-foot
stretch. The pod count for a three-foot-by-three-foot area was
420. Pod counts on the first seven stops on the route ranged from
301 to 715.
A scout from Brazil on his third Midwest tour said the soybean
crop would need rain in the next few days in order to meet U.S.
government yield projections.
The USDA, in its August supply and demand report, projected
Indiana's average corn yield at 164 bushels per acre, up from last
year's total of 155 bushels. However, because of a projected
reduction in harvested acres, the state's total 2008 production is
projected to drop to 877.4 million bushels, down from 987.4 million
last year.
Scouts on the route, which include industry representatives and
members of the media, noted there was relatively little disease
pressure for corn and soybeans.
The state's soybean crop is expected to grow to 255.3 million
bushels this year, up from 210.6 million last year.
The second day of the eastern tour will wind up Monday night in
Bloomington, Ill., where tour officials will calculate the average
corn yield and average soybean pod counts in a three-foot by
three-foot square area.
A group of about 15 people from Morgan Stanley in New York will
also join the tour in Bloomington, officials said. There are 50
scouts traveling on 12 routes Tuesday.
The Pro Farmer tour also has a western leg, which began Tuesday in
Grand Island, Neb. Both legs of the tour will converge in Austin,
Minn., on Thursday.
On Friday at 10 a.m. EDT, Pro Farmer will release a crop estimate,
but tour findings are only one part of their calculation.
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Corn yields seen above average in S.Dakota - tour
PICKSTOWN, South Dakota, Aug 18 (Reuters) - Corn crops in
southeastern South Dakota were showing near to above average
yield potential, but soybeans were developing behind schedule
due to late planting, crop scouts on an annual crop tour said
on Monday.
"It is pretty eye-appealing from the road," said Chip
Flory, a leader on the western leg of the Pro Farmer Midwest
Crop Tour.
"Some of the sins of the spring are evident. They planted
it when it was too wet. There's some evidence of poor emergence
out there," Flory said, referring to both corn and soybeans.
Corn yields were seen at 118.7 bushels per acre, according
to a survey of six fields on one route of the tour. The fields
were located in Aurora, Davison, Douglas and Charles Mix
counties.
A year ago, the tour estimated corn yields in the same part
of South Dakota at 111.4 bushels, and the three-year tour
average is 118.9 bushels.
The tour does not project soybean yields. Instead, scouts
calculate the average number of pods in a 3-by-3-foot plot and
compare findings with previous years to gauge crop potential.
The average soybean pod count of five fields on the route
was 817.1 pods, which includes a field that was still blooming
and had not developed any pods yet.
The 2007 tour found a soybean pod count in southeast South
Dakota of 1,068.9, and the three-year tour average is 1,001.6.
Late-maturing soybeans were expected this year as a cool
and wet spring delayed planting in many areas around the
Midwest.
Scouts on a second route through southeast South Dakota
estimated corn yield potential in seven fields at 101 to 213.6
bushels per acre. Soybean pod counts were even more variable,
ranging from 132 to 917 pods.
On a third route, corn yields were seen ranging from 134.8
to 193 bushels per acre. The soybean pod count on fields on the
third route ranged from 676 to 1,520, a scout said.
Some damage from soybean leaf beetles was found in the
area, as well as some signs of aphids.
Scouts reported little drought stress, despite dry
conditions during the past few weeks, but some rain would help
boost the pod development in soybeans, Flory said.
The western leg of the Pro Farmer tour was scheduled to
reach Grand Island, Nebraska, on Monday night.
Scouts on the western and eastern halves of the tour are
expected to survey corn and soybeans from more than 2,000
fields in seven states by Thursday night, when the tour wraps
up in Austin, Minnesota.
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