Texas crop conditions vary across the state
May 21, 2009 8:12 AM
Conditions varied widely across Texas, with crops off to a good start in some areas thanks to rains.
As for other parts of the state, it was either too much, too little or too late, according to reports from Texas AgriLife Extension Service personnel.
In North Texas, too much rain threatened to drown out wheat and corn. In much of South Texas and Southwest, Southeast, Far West and Coastal Bend regions, many crops not under irrigation were not growing or declared a total loss by insurance adjusters.
The situation in Mitchell County, west of Abilene, is representative of much of Central Texas where insurance adjusters have been busy, said John Senter, AgriLife Extension agent.
"This current drought situation began, for all practical purposes, last fall as we began to wrap up cotton harvest," Senter said. "Typically, of the 25,000 to 30,000 acres of wheat we planted, most would be combined for grain. At this time there are virtually no fields that are going to be combined for grain because the yields are just not there."
A large portion of his producers did insure their wheat in order to be in compliance with federal farm program requirements, he said. A "vast" proportion of the county's insured wheat has been terminated or zeroed-out by insurance adjusters.
Much of the wheat has recently been released by the adjusters for grazing, he said.
In the north, it was a matter of too much rain. What wheat the April freeze didn't take, heavy rains knocked down or caused sprouting of the heads. Coastal Bend growers had a similar experience with drowned wheat.
(New Course)
