Acreage (Released June 29, 2007)

摘要

Corn planted area for all purposes is estimated at 92.9 million acres in 2007, up 19 percent from 2006 and 14 percent higher than 2005. Farmers increased corn plantings 3 percent from their March intentions, resulting in the highest planted area since 1944 when 95.5 million acres were planted for all purposes. Wet conditions during March and April delayed field preparations and planting activities in the Corn Belt and Great Plains. Conditions dried out considerably in the eastern Corn Belt and Ohio Valley during May allowing producers to make good planting progress, but the lack of precipitation reduced topsoil moisture and increased stress on the crop. Meanwhile, excessive rainfall in parts of the western Corn Belt, central and southern Great Plains, and middle Mississippi Valley during much of May continued to hamper fieldwork. Despite the weather related delays, growers made rapid progress and planting was completed ahead of the average pace. Farmers reported that 99 percent of the intended corn acreage had been planted at the time of the survey interview which is slightly above the average for the past 10 years.