HRW conditions modestly improve during March

HRW wheat conditions are still below when the crop entered dormancy and historically low.

wheat - grain system - grain leg - grain bins - Lindsey Pound
wheat - grain system - grain leg - grain bins - Lindsey Pound
(Lindsey Pound)

Individual state crop conditions ratings showed modest improvement in the HRW wheat crop during March. The “good” to “excellent” ratings for HRW wheat stood at 19% in Kansas (unchanged from the end of February), 34% in Oklahoma (down two points), 18% in Texas (down one point), 28% in Colorado (down one point), 22% in Nebraska (up three points), 22% in South Dakota (down one point) and 31% in Montana (up 10 points). When the updated crop condition ratings were plugged into the weighted Pro Farmer Crop Condition Index (CCI; 0 to 500 point scale, with 500 being perfect), the HRW crop improved 3.4 points from the end of February to a rating of 267.5. The HRW crop went into dormancy with the lowest fall CCI rating on record of 280.3.

Pro Farmer Crop Condition Index for HRW Wheat

March 26, 2023

Feb. 26, 2023

Nov. 28, 2022

Kansas (39.61%*)

96.24

97.03

102.97

Oklahoma (12.81%)

36.76

34.97

37.91

Texas (7.77%)

19.43

19.35

22.53

Colorado (6.52%)

19.22

19.03

17.99

Nebraska (4.52%)

12.24

12.15

12.01

S. Dakota (4.44%)

13.59

13.37

13.10

Montana (8.42%)

27.44

26.18

29.12

HRW total

267.52

264.13

280.28

* denotes percentage of total national HRW crop production.