March 31, 2007

US Corn Planted Acreage Up 15 Percent from 2006

Wyoming: As of March 1, Wyoming farmers planted or intended to plant 430,000 acres of small grains and row crops last Fall and this Spring, nearly the same as last year, according to Vito Wagner with the Wyoming Statistical Office of USDA NASS. Winter wheat plantings were up from last year and intentions for spring wheat and corn were also higher. Planting intentions for barley, oats, sugarbeets, and dry beans were all down from the actual 2006 plantings.

Small Grains: Wyoming's 2007 barley acreage is expected to total 65,000 acres, down 5,000 from last year, and 10,000 acres below the 2005 crop. Farmers intend to plant 45,000 acres of oats, down 3,000 acres from last year, and down 10,000 acres from 2005. Spring wheat, at 9,000 acres, will be up 1,000 acres from last year but unchanged from 2005. Winter wheat was seeded on 160,000 acres last fall, up 10,000 acres from the 2006 crop, but the same as planted for the 2005 crop.

Row Crops: Wyoming farmers expect to plant 90,000 acres of corn this year, up 5,000 acres from last year and up 10,000 acres from 2005. Producers intend to plant 36,000 acres of sugarbeets, which would be 16 percent below last year but virtually unchanged from 2005. Dry bean plantings this year are expected to total 25,000 acres, down 4,000 acres from 2006 and down 9,000 acres from 2005.

The total acreage of all hay expected to be harvested in the State in 2007 is 1.10 million acres. This would be 5 percent above last year, but 4 percent below the 2005 crop.

These estimates are based on a survey conducted in early March. Actual plantings may vary from these estimates because of weather, economic conditions, and the effect of this report itself.

United States: All wheat planted area is estimated at 60.3 million acres, up 5 percent from 2006. The 2007 winter wheat planted area, at 44.5 million acres, is 10 percent above last year and up 1 percent from the previous estimate. Of this total, about 31.9 million acres are Hard Red Winter, 8.66 million acres are Soft Red Winter Wheat, and 3.92 million acres are White Winter Wheat. Other spring wheat growers intend to plant 13.8 million acres this year, down 7 percent from 2006. Of the total, about 13.3 million acres are Hard Red Spring wheat.

Growers intend to plant 3.70 million acres of barley for 2007, up 7 percent from last year. If realized, this will be the second lowest barley planted acreage on record. Oat acres seeded and to be seeded for the 2007 crop year are expected to total 4.03 million acres, down 3 percent from last year. If realized, this will be the lowest planted acreage on record.

Growers intend to plant 1.50 million acres of dry beans in 2007, down 8 percent from both last year and 2005. The decrease in planted acres can be attributed in part to strong prices for competing crops. Area planted to sugarbeets for the 2007 crop year is expected to total 1.29 million acres, 5 percent lower than the 2006 planted acreage. Corn growers intend to plant 90.5 million acres of corn for all purposes in 2007, up 15 percent from 2006 and 11 percent higher than 2005. If realized this would be the highest acreage since 1944, when 95.5 million acres were planted for all purposes. Hay producers expect to harvest 63.1 million acres of all hay in 2007, up 4 percent from last year.