RFD-TV Weekly Crop Progress and Livestock Production Regional Update

NASHVILLE, TENN. (RFD NEWS) — This week’s state-by-state picture is still being driven by weather. USDA’s latest published crop-and-weather data, covering the week of April 19, showed row-crop planting generally ahead of average in parts of the South, but slowed by flooding in the Upper Midwest and Great Lakes, while drought and wildfire pressure continued to weigh on the Southeast and much of the West.

By April 26, corn planting reached 17 percent, soybeans 18 percent, cotton 15 percent, and rice 65 percent . Spring wheat planting also moved ahead to 17 percent. Winter wheat conditions showed slight improvement but remain under pressure, with 31 percent rated good to excellent nationally, and continued concerns in key states like Kansas.

Great Plains

Texas: Texas remains one of the fastest-moving states in the country. By April 19, corn was 65% planted, soybeans 55%, cotton 16%, and sorghum 57%, while winter wheat was 49% good to excellent and fully headed in the reporting areas.
Oklahoma: Oklahoma wheat remains under pressure. Winter wheat was 30% headed by April 19, but only 10% of the crop was rated good to excellent, leaving the state still highly dependent on timely moisture and milder temperatures.
Kansas: Kansas remains the biggest wheat trouble spot in the Plains. Winter wheat was 15% headed, but just 24% was rated good to excellent, and freeze concerns layered onto an already drought-stressed crop.
Nebraska: Nebraska’s early corn pace improved to 8% planted by April 19, ahead of last week and near the five-year average. But wheat ratings remained soft at 11% good to excellent, showing that moisture remains uneven across the state.
Colorado and Wyoming: Colorado had 5% of corn planted by April 19, but winter wheat was only 14% good to excellent. USDA’s broader weather bulletin also noted drought deterioration across the central High Plains, including parts of Colorado and Wyoming, with freeze injury a concern after mid-April cold.
The Dakotas: North Dakota and South Dakota are still early in the season, but spring wheat and oat progress remains important to watch. South Dakota had 4% spring wheat planted and 19% oats planted by April 19, while North Dakota was still at 1% spring wheat planted, reflecting a later northern start.

Midwest

Iowa: Iowa’s planting pace picked up, with 2% of corn and 1% of soybeans planted by April 19. Oat planting reached 19%, but winter wheat condition slipped to 51% good to excellent, down from the prior week.
Illinois: Illinois moved faster than normal, with 13% of corn and 20% of soybeans planted by April 19. Winter wheat was 64% good to excellent, which is far better than the southern Plains, and gives the state a firmer wheat backdrop heading deeper into spring.
Indiana and Ohio: Indiana had 14% of corn planted and winter wheat rated 70% good to excellent, while Ohio stood at 9% corn planted with wheat at 67% good to excellent. Both states benefited from earlier warmth, but recent cool swings mean growers are still watching emergence and frost risk closely.
Missouri: Missouri remains active in both row crops and wheat. Corn was 23% planted, soybeans 14%, rice 36%, and winter wheat 65% good to excellent by April 19, though late-week storms and heavy rain added another layer of fieldwork risk.

Delta & South

Arkansas: Arkansas stayed among the faster-moving Delta states. Rice was 61% planted and 30% emerged by April 19, while winter wheat was 47% good to excellent and cotton planting had started.
Louisiana: Louisiana remains one of the most advanced states in spring planting. Soybeans were 58% planted and rice was 90% planted, with 78% of the rice crop emerged by April 19.
Mississippi: Mississippi also kept a strong early pace. Soybeans reached 55% planted, rice 70% planted, and 47% emerged by April 19, while cotton planting moved to 9%.
Tennessee and Kentucky: Tennessee was one of the nation’s fastest soybean states at 50% planted by April 19, and corn reached 64%. Kentucky was 48% planted on corn and 23% on soybeans, both ahead of normal, showing the Mid-South and lower Ohio Valley took advantage of earlier windows.
Alabama, Georgia, Florida, and the Carolinas: The Southeast remains the weather stress center right now. Drought covered almost the entire region by mid-April, Georgia entered a state emergency with a 91-county burn ban because of severe wildfire danger, and fires in Georgia and Florida were destroying homes and disrupting rural areas even as planting continued in scattered windows.

West & Southwest

California: California led cotton planting at 50% by April 19, well ahead of last year and the five-year average. But broader water concerns remain in view because snowpack was exceptionally poor, even though reservoirs entered late April in better shape than many Western systems.
Arizona and New Mexico: Arizona had 47% of cotton planted by April 19, keeping it among the most advanced cotton states. Across the broader Southwest, low snowpack and below-normal runoff forecasts continue to point to a tight irrigation season.
Nevada and Utah: These interior western states are heading into spring with weak runoff expectations. USDA and federal drought updates said the West entered mid-April with drought expanding again, especially where snowpack melted early and failed to rebuild confidence in water supplies.

Northwest & Northern Rockies

Washington: Washington’s wheat remains comparatively better than the central Plains, with winter wheat rated 92% good to excellent on April 19 in the state tables. Even so, the bigger issue is water: the Washington Department of Ecology declared a statewide drought emergency on April 8 because of low snowpack and multiple years of precipitation deficits.
Oregon and Idaho: Idaho winter wheat was 88% good to excellent, and Oregon’s was 64% good to excellent, which is a better crop posture than most of the southern Plains. But Pacific Northwest drought outlooks continue to warn that Oregon and south-central Washington are at risk for worsening dryness and a more difficult irrigation season.
Montana: Montana’s small grains are just getting started, with barley 25% planted and spring wheat 1% emerged by April 19. Wheat condition is mixed, and the state remains part of the broader northern Rockies water-supply concern tied to the weak snow year.

Northeast

Pennsylvania and New York: Pennsylvania had 1% corn planted and winter wheat rated 45% good to excellent by April 19, while broader Northeast fruit and specialty producers were dealing with whiplash weather. After very warm conditions accelerated budding, later frosts and chill raised concern for orchards and specialty crops across the region.
New England: Field crop activity remains slower than in the Midwest, but weather volatility is the bigger story. Farmers across the Northeast have been dealing with abrupt swings from early heat to frost and even snow showers, which has complicated fruit, flower, and specialty crop timing.
Mid-Atlantic: Delaware, New Jersey, Maryland, and surrounding areas saw unusually early heat in mid-April before cooler conditions returned. That pattern helped dry fields briefly, but it also increased frost concern for orchards, vegetables, and early plantings as growers moved toward late April.

Upper Midwest & Great Lakes

Minnesota: Minnesota remained in the early stages of spring work. Corn planting reached 6%, soybeans 3%, oats 21%, and spring wheat 3% by April 19, showing progress but not an unusually aggressive pace.
Wisconsin: Wisconsin was one of the wettest problem spots in the country. Heavy rain and flooding sharply limited fieldwork, with just 1.1 days suitable for fieldwork in the latest state report, while flooding pushed several rivers above historic marks.
Michigan: Michigan is also dealing with flood fallout. USDA progress tables still showed almost no row-crop planting by April 19, and state agriculture officials were warning farms and food businesses to protect livestock, feed, and facilities as flooding continued.

Far North & Territories

Alaska: Alaska is still in its normal late-spring transition, with most field activity limited compared to the Lower 48. Extension and gardening programs are ramping up for the short season, but there has not been a major statewide field-crop headline comparable to the Corn Belt this week.
Hawaii: Hawaii’s top issue has been flood recovery, not planting pace. USDA said recent flooding significantly affected agricultural operations, though drought bulletins also noted some Big Island and Molokaʻi water conditions had improved compared with earlier stress.
Puerto Rico and other territories: Broad drought tracking still shows Puerto Rico included in national dryness monitoring, but week-to-week field updates are much thinner than on the mainland. For now, the biggest national takeaway is that territories remain part of the broader U.S. weather-stress picture even when major crop progress data are limited.