US winter wheat recovers further on rains

Rain across the US Southern Plains for a second consecutive week improved US winter wheat ratings further after the crops suffered a stretch of persistent dry weather during the first quarter of 2018, data released by the USDA’s local offices showed late Monday.

Winter wheat in Texas, one of the major HRW-growing regions, saw the percentage rated “poor to very poor” fall 4 percentage points to 59% while wheat rated “good to excellent” rose three percentage points on the week to 15%.

The USDA said wheat fields are improving but the crops are “still in need of moisture”.

Winter wheat quality in Colorado remained fairly neutral, with crop rated “poor to very poor” only gaining one percentage point on the week to 22%, while crops rated “good to excellent” remained unchanged at 39%.

“Isolated moisture was received in areas, but not enough to provide any real relief from drought conditions,” the USDA said, while higher winds were erasing “any benefit from received moisture”.

Over in Kansas, the US’ largest HRW producer, wheat rated “good to excellent” remained unchanged at 39% on the week, while its “poor to very poor” share lost two points on the week and now stands at 47%.