Kansas’ wheat acreage up from 2004

Wichita ? The nation’s farmers planted fewer acres of winter wheat for the 2005 harvest than last season, although Kansas growers boosted their acreage of the crop, the National Agricultural Statistics Service said Wednesday.

The agency’s plantings report offers the first glimpse of the potential size of this year’s crop. Winter wheat is seeded in the fall.

Winter wheat planted for 2005 is expected to total 41.6 million acres nationwide, down 4 percent from last year. In Kansas, the nation’s leading wheat producer, farmers planted 10.1 million acres of wheat.

“It’s important — when you are talking about an investment of 10 million acres in Kansas,” said David Frey, administrator of the Kansas Wheat Commission.

Wheat acreage has remained flat in the last several years. The state’s 2005 wheat acreage is up 1 percent — about 100,000 acres — from a year ago, but below the 10.5 million acres planted in 2003.

“The acreage is up ever so slightly over last year, but I think a lot more of it will be harvested this year,” Frey said. “It looks like we have a better chance of having some wheat. Of course, we are a long way from harvest.”

Seeding of winter wheat acres in the state began the first week of September, followed by dry conditions the rest of that month, Kansas Agricultural Statistics Service said. Widespread rain showers in October and November boosted soil moisture for germination.

The wheat crop has more top growth and better soil moisture than last year’s crop did at this time, Frey said.

Kansas harvested 314.5 million bushels last year, down 34 percent from the 2003 crop, the agency said.

The 2004 crop production summary for Kansas, issued Wednesday by the Kansas Agricultural Statistics Service:¢ Corn production totaled a record 432 million bushels, up 132 million bushels from 2003. The yield averaged 150 bushels per acre, 30 bushels per acre more than 2003.¢ Milo production for grain in Kansas totaled 220.4 million bushels. It was up 89.9 million bushels above the previous year.¢ Production of Kansas soybeans totaled a record 111.1 million bushels, up 54.1 million bushels from 2003.¢ Production of all types of hay was 7.9 million tons, up 880,000 tons from the previous year.¢ Wheat production was 314.5 million bushels, down 165.5 million bushels from 2003.¢ Sunflower production totaled 226.4 million pounds, up 21.4 million pounds from 2003.¢ Cotton production was 130,000 bales, up from 89,500 bales in 2003.

Nationwide, about 30.5 million acres were planted with hard red winter wheat, the type most commonly grown in Kansas. Another 6.6 million acres nationally were seeded with soft red winter wheat, down 19 percent from last year.

Wet fall conditions hampered planting — with Missouri, Illinois, Ohio, West Virginia and New Jersey all at record low levels.

White winter wheat was seeded on 4.5 million acres, up 4 percent from last year. Farmers in Idaho, Oregon and Washington took advantage of the good soil moisture in the Pacific Northwest to plant more white wheat acres, the national statistics service said.

Details about the 2005 crop come at a time when as Kansas wheat stocks are low. The state service reported Wednesday that wheat stocks on and off the farm totaled 192.7 million bushels Dec. 1, down 30 percent from a year ago.