Winter wheat drought continues to show improvement

The amount of U.S. winter wheat considered in drought conditions decreased one point to 69% for the week ended March 29, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor. USDA said winter wheat drought was 20% “moderate,” 32% “severe,” 16% “extreme,” and 2% “exceptional.” Last week, USDA rated winter wheat drought as 21% “moderate,” 31% “severe,” 16% “extreme,” and 2% “exceptional."

For HRW areas, the area considered abnormally dry/drought in Kansas dropped five points to 72%. Oklahoma had a one-point drop in the area classified as abnormally dry/drought to 86%. Texas had a one-point reduction to 95% of its area listed as abnormally dry/drought. The abnormally dry/drought area in South Dakota increased by four points to 86%. Nebraska (99%), Montana (87%), and Colorado (100%) had the same amount of land considered abnormally dry/drought.

In SRW areas, the abnormally dry/drought area in North Carolina declined by three points to 41%. Missouri had none of its area classified as abnormally dry/drought, a 26-point decrease. Arkansas had a four-point drop in the area listed as abnormally dry/drought to 31%. Michigan had 23% of its area considered abnormally dry/drought, a 31-point decline. Illinois had 19% of its land classified as abnormally dry/drought, a nine-point drop. Ohio (0%) and Indiana (0%) had the same percentage of the area considered abnormally dry/drought as the previous week.