USDA Crop Progress Report - Soybean Condition Rated 62% Good to Excellent, Corn Condition Falls 5 Points

OMAHA (DTN) -- Corn and soybean planting and development continued ahead of the average pace last week, but conditions for both crops are some of the lowest in at least the past decade, USDA NASS reported in its weekly Crop Progress Report on Tuesday.

CORN

-- Planting progress: Corn planting moved ahead 4 percentage points last week to reach 96% as of Sunday, June 4. That's 3 percentage points ahead of last year's 93% and 5 points ahead of the five-year average of 91%.

-- Crop progress: 85% of corn had emerged as of Sunday, up 13 percentage points from the previous week and 8 percentage points ahead of the five-year average of 77%.

-- Crop condition: Nationally, corn was rated 64% good to excellent, down 5 percentage points from 69% the previous week and below last year's rating at this time of 73%. The current rating is the third-lowest start for the crop this time of year since 2010, noted DTN Lead Analyst Todd Hultman. Last year's second-largest corn producer, Illinois, showed 50% of corn rated good to excellent, the lowest rating for this time of year since 2002, he said.

SOYBEANS

-- Planting progress: Soybean planting moved ahead 8 percentage points last week to reach 91% as of Sunday. That is 15 percentage points ahead of both last year and the five-year average of 76%.

-- Crop progress: 74% of soybeans were emerged as of Sunday, 20 percentage points ahead of last year and 18 points ahead of the five-year average of 56%.

-- Crop condition: In its first soybean condition rating of the season, NASS pegged conditions of the crop nationwide at 62% good to excellent. It's the lowest start for soybeans this time of year since at least 2008, Hultman said. "Fifty-one percent of soybeans in Illinois, last year's largest soybean producer, were rated good to excellent, the lowest start since 2013," he said.

WINTER WHEAT

-- Crop development: 82% of winter wheat was headed nationwide as of Sunday, up 10 percentage points from the previous week and still 1 point behind than the five-year average.

-- Harvest progress: 4% of the crop was harvested as of Sunday, slightly behind last year's 5% and equal to the five-year average.

-- Crop condition: Nationwide, winter wheat was rated 36% good to excellent, up 2 percentage points from 34% the previous week and ahead of last year's rating at this time of 30% good to excellent. Notable states: "Sixty-five percent of the crop in Kansas was rated poor or very poor, while 63% of the crop in Washington, the second-largest producer, was rated good to excellent," Hultman said.

SPRING WHEAT

-- Planting progress: 93% of the spring wheat crop was planted as of Sunday, up 8 percentage points from the previous week and now equal to the five-year average.

-- Crop progress: 76% of spring wheat was emerged as of Sunday, up 19 percentage points from the previous week and now 2 percentage points ahead of the five-year average of 74%.

-- Crop condition: USDA said 64% of the spring wheat crop was rated good to excellent as of June 4, tied with 2013 for the fourth-lowest start since 2010, Hultman said. In North Dakota, the largest spring wheat state, 67% of the crop was rated good to excellent.

THE WEEK AHEAD IN WEATHER

The nation's weather pattern is forecast to change this week, though not significantly, according to DTN Ag Meteorologist John Baranick.

"The weather pattern is changing this week, but we won't see a huge difference from the last couple of weeks," Baranick said. "Scattered showers and thunderstorms are still going to occur across the Plains, though maybe in a more limited fashion than the last couple of weeks. Drier weather is still expected for much of the Midwest as well.

"But temperatures will certainly be different. A cold front is going to move through the eastern half of the Midwest early this week. Highs will drop a good 10 degrees or so behind the front, which will help to reduce crop stress from the dry conditions. Only the western side of the front will be particularly active, with isolated to scattered showers mostly west of the Mississippi River for the early half of the week. That will allow temperatures to build up in the Northern Plains when showers aren't occurring, with readings nearing or eclipsing the 90-degree Fahrenheit mark there.

"This weekend we should get the real change to the pattern as we see a cold front sweep across the Plains and Midwest with relatively widespread precipitation, a feature that hasn't occurred in quite a while. The eastern Midwest will get its best chance at solid rainfall amounts in the past few weeks.

"After the front passes, the wet pattern for the Southern Plains will end and a more 'normal' summertime pattern of passing fronts and building thunderstorms into clusters is forecast to occur. That will take place next week."