Spring wheat planting is well behind in the northwestern corn belt due to the recent snow and flooded fields and the forecast doesn’t look conducive either. USDA’s crop progress report showed spring wheat planting at a standstill in North Dakota and Minnesota and only 2-percent in South Dakota compared to the average of 47-percent.
Clark, South Dakota farmer Laird Larson says his planter sits in the yard, like many, with so many wet spots in his fields. He says he’s a week away from planting and the window is narrowing in the state.
Larson says planting after that date increases the potential for lower yields.
As a result, Larson thinks there will be less acres of spring wheat in the state as farmers switch to other crops or take prevented plant.
The last planting dates for spring wheat for crop insurance are also approaching. In southeastern South Dakota the cutoff is May 5 and in the northeast its May 15.
