Cr Pr 2-3 (1-04) Winter Wheat Seedings National Agricultural Statistics Service USDA Washington, D.C. Released January 12, 2004, by the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), Agricultural Statistics Board, U.S. Department of Agriculture. For information on "Winter Wheat Seedings" call Lance Honig at (202) 720-8068, office hours 7:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. ET. Planted Acres Down 3 Percent Winter wheat seeded area for 2004 is expected to total 43.5 million acres, down 3 percent from 2003. Approximate class acreage breakdowns are: Hard Red Winter, 31.0 million; Soft Red Winter, 8.3 million; and White Winter, 4.2 million. Winter Wheat: Area Seeded, United States, 2002-2004 (Domestic Units) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Crop Year : 2004 Item :--------------------------------------------------: as Pct. of : 2002 : 2003 : 2004 : 2003 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : -------------- 1,000 Acres ------------- Percent : Winter : Wheat : 41,845 44,945 43,464 97 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Winter Wheat: Area Seeded, United States, 2002-2004 (Metric Units) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Crop Year : 2004 Item :--------------------------------------------------: as Pct. of : 2002 : 2003 : 2004 : 2003 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : ----------------- Hectares ----------------- Percent : Winter : Wheat : 16,934,250 18,188,790 17,589,450 97 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Winter Wheat: Planted area for harvest in 2004 is estimated at 43.5 million acres. This is down 3 percent from 2003. Seeding began last August and advanced ahead of the 5-year average pace throughout the fall. Nearly all of the U.S. acreage was seeded by December 1. Most remaining intended area is in the Southeast and California. Seeding should finish sometime next month in California. Hard Red Winter (HRW) wheat seeded area is about 31.0 million acres, down 4 percent from 2003. Acreage declines are reported in the southern Great Plains States, where moisture supplies remain low. The Texas High Plains only received 54 percent of normal rainfall during August, September, and October. As of November 30 in Kansas, 65 percent of the topsoil moisture was rated short to very short, and 69 percent of the subsoil moisture fell into that category. Germination rates in Colorado were below normal as the crop headed into dormancy. Nebraska planted acreage is unchanged from 2003 where crop condition ratings at the end of November were only slightly better than a year earlier. Growers in the Dakotas and Montana seeded more winter wheat than a year ago even though moisture is also short there. Emergence problems and lack of snow cover left growers concerned about the winter-hardiness of the crop. Soft Red Winter (SRW) area, at about 8.3 million acres, is up slightly from last year. Several factors contributed to significant acreage increases in Missouri and Illinois, including record high yields last year, good prices, and some disappointment with alternative crop yields. North Carolina growers also planted substantially more wheat this fall, rebounding from last year's well below normal level. Most remaining SRW States planted fewer acres than last year, most notably Ohio. White Winter wheat seeded area totals about 4.2 million acres, down 7 percent from 2003. Dry conditions across the Pacific Northwest (Idaho, Oregon, and Washington) hampered emergence and in many cases resulted in less than ideal stands. Acreage is down is all 3 States largely due to the lack of soil moisture. Some early planted fields in Washington were reseeded due to crusting. Durum Wheat: Seedings in Arizona and California for 2004 harvest are estimated at 180,000 acres. This total is down 27 percent from their final 2003 acreage. Planting is ongoing in California's San Jaoquin and Imperial Valleys. No major problems with the crop have been reported. This report was approved on January 12, 2004. Acting Secretary of Agriculture James R. Moseley Agricultural Statistics Board Chairperson Rich Allen Winter Wheat: Area Seeded, by State and United States, 2002-2004 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Crop Year : 2004 State :--------------------------------------------------: as Pct. of : 2002 : 2003 : 2004 : 2003 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : -------------- 1,000 Acres ------------- Percent : AL : 150 150 120 80 AZ : 10 4 6 150 AR : 960 700 680 97 CA : 530 675 600 89 CO : 2,350 2,600 2,300 88 DE : 60 50 45 90 FL : 19 20 20 100 GA : 350 380 350 92 ID : 730 760 720 95 IL : 680 850 1,000 118 IN : 350 460 430 93 IA : 20 21 20 95 KS : 9,600 10,400 9,900 95 KY : 550 480 480 100 LA : 230 155 190 123 MD : 195 165 170 103 MI : 500 680 600 88 MN : 35 25 20 80 MS : 250 150 190 127 MO : 900 960 1,050 109 MT : 1,450 1,800 1,850 103 NE : 1,650 1,900 1,900 100 NV : 6 7 6 86 NJ : 38 31 24 77 NM : 520 500 470 94 NY : 130 130 100 77 NC : 650 530 650 123 ND : 80 130 240 185 OH : 860 1,060 900 85 OK : 6,100 6,600 6,400 97 OR : 800 970 900 93 PA : 190 175 140 80 SC : 210 200 195 98 SD : 1,300 1,600 1,700 106 TN : 470 430 400 93 TX : 6,400 6,600 6,200 94 UT : 140 160 150 94 VA : 230 210 200 95 WA : 1,800 1,850 1,750 95 WV : 12 12 8 67 WI : 190 205 240 117 WY : 150 160 150 94 : US : 41,845 44,945 43,464 97 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Durum Wheat: Area Seeded, by State and United States, 2002-2004 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Crop Year : 2004 State :--------------------------------------------------: as Pct. of : 2002 : 2003 : 2004 1/ : 2003 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : ------------- 1,000 Acres ------------ Percent : AZ : 89 115 100 87 CA : 95 130 80 62 MN : 5 2 MT : 590 640 ND : 2,100 2,000 SD : 30 28 : US : 2,909 2,915 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ Indicated 2004 area seeded for all six states will be published in "Prospective Plantings" released March 31, 2004. 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