April 5, 2002
Oklahoma Crop Condition Update - April 2002
Summary
Rainfall during September-October 2001 favored planting, emergence, and establishment of the 2002 Oklahoma winter wheat crop. Soil moisture levels in fall 2001 were much better for wheat planting and growth than those experienced a year ago for the 2001 (fall 2000) wheat crop. Precipitation during winter-early spring 2001/2002 was much below normal, as well as below that registered over the past few years. Low soil moisture levels during Spring 2002 have resulted in poorer winter wheat conditions in Oklahoma as of April 1, 2002, compared to recent years.
Crop Conditions
According the USDA's National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), Oklahoma farmers planted 5.8 million acres of wheat in fall 2001, up four percent from the previous year. On April 1, 2002, NASS reported that 55 percent of the Oklahoma's wheat crop was in poor to very poor condition. In early April 2001, 26 percent of the Oklahoma crop was rated as poor to very poor, compared to only 4 percent in April 2000. Satellite images from March 2002 indicate that crop conditions are currently greener than those seen in March 2001; however, more of the planted area last year was still dormant or low in growth due to cold spring 2001 weather. PECAD's soil moisture model supports that crop conditions are much worse this year in late March, compared to 2001 and 2000.
Click on any of the soil moisture maps to see a larger map
Soil Moisture
As can be seen in the soil moisture maps (above), soil moisture as of March 25, 2002, is much lower than in March 2001 or 2000. On March 25, in 2000 and 2001, soil moisture was adequate to surplus, as shown by the dark green across North Central Oklahoma, a major rain-fed wheat growing area. PECAD's soil moisture model indicates that this year North Central Oklahoma and much of the western half of the state are undergoing a drought, shown in red.
Rainfall Graph