Cr Pr 2-3 (1-08)

Washington, D.C.

Winter Wheat

Seedings

Released January 11, 2008, by the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), Agricultural Statistics Board, U.S.

Department of Agriculture. For information on Winter Wheat Seedings call Todd Ballard at (202) 720-8068, office hours 7:30

a.m. to 4:00 p.m. ET.

Planted Acres Up 4 Percent

Winter wheat seeded area for 2008 is expected to total 46.6 million acres, up 4 percent from 2007. 

Approximate class acreage breakdowns are: Hard Red Winter, 32.5 million; Soft Red Winter,

10.5 million; and White Winter, 3.65 million.

Winter Wheat: Area Seeded, United States, 2006-2008

(Domestic Units)

Item

Crop Year 2008

as Pct. of

2006 2007 2008 2007

1,000 Acres 1,000 Acres 1,000 Acres Percent

Winter

 Wheat 40,575 44,987 46,610 104

Winter Wheat: Area Seeded, United States, 2006-2008

(Metric Units)

Item

Crop Year 2008

as Pct. of

2006 2007 2008 2007

Hectares Hectares Hectares Percent

Winter

 Wheat 16,420,300 18,205,790 18,862,600 104
Winter Wheat Seedings Agricultural Statistics Board

January 2008 2 NASS, USDA

Winter Wheat: Planted area for harvest in 2008 is estimated at 46.6 million acres, up 4 percent

from 2007. Seeding began last August behind the 5-year average pace and remained behind until

mid-November due to a lack of moisture in the Great Plains during much of the seeding period. 

Nearly all of the U.S. acreage was seeded by December 1 with the exception of some intended

acres in the Southeast and California. Seeding was completed by the end of December in

California. The winter wheat crop condition at the end of November was rated at 44 percent good

to excellent compared with 53 percent the previous year.

Hard Red Winter (HRW) wheat seeded area is about 32.5 million acres, down 1 percent from 2007. 

Acreage was below last year’s level in all States in the HRW growing area except North Dakota

and Montana, where acreage increased 185,000 and 460,000, respectively. The dry fall limited

planted acres in some parts of the region with planted area down 500,000 acres in Kansas and down

200,000 in both Oklahoma and Texas. Normal crop rotations also reduced seedings in some States

in the region following the large winter wheat crop planted last year. 

Soft Red Winter (SRW) area, at about 10.5 million acres, is up 21 percent from last year. Large

acreage increases from last year occurred in all SRW growing States due largely to strong prices

and ideal planting and germination conditions. Planted area increases of 200,000 acres or more are

expected in Illinois, Michigan, Ohio, and Tennessee. Record high planted acreage is expected in

Wisconsin, while North Carolina is expected to tie the record high set in 1985. 

White Winter wheat seeded area totals nearly 3.65 million acres, up 7 percent from 2007. Crop

conditions varied across the three Pacific Northwest States (Idaho, Oregon, and Washington)

throughout the fall. Planted acreage in Washington and Oregon is up 30,000 acres each for 2008,

with Idaho expecting an increase of 150,000 acres. Seeding began ahead of normal in all three

States with some concerns about moisture supplies in Washington going into the winter months. 

By the first week of November, virtually all fields had been seeded in the region with 89 percent of

the acreage emerged in Washington, 76 percent in Idaho, and 60 percent in Oregon.

Durum Wheat: Seedings in Arizona and California for 2008 harvest are estimated at

280,000 acres. This total is up 70 percent from their 2007 level. Planting is ongoing in California's

San Joaquin and Imperial Valleys as well as western Arizona. Planted acreage is up 60,000 in

Arizona and up 55,000 in California due mostly to good prices. No major problems with the crop

have been reported.

This report was approved on January 11, 2008.

Acting Secretary of

Agriculture

Floyd D. Gaibler

Agricultural Statistics Board

Chairperson

Carol C. House
Winter Wheat Seedings Agricultural Statistics Board

January 2008 3 NASS, USDA

Winter Wheat: Area Seeded, by State and United States, 2006-2008

State

Crop Year 2008

as Pct. of

2006 2007 2008 2007

1,000 Acres 1,000 Acres 1,000 Acres Percent

AL

AZ

AR

CA

CO

DE

FL

GA

ID

IL

IN

IA

KS

KY

LA

MD

MI

MN

MS

MO

MT

NE

NV

NJ

NM

NY

NC

ND

OH

OK

OR

PA

SC

SD

TN

TX

UT

VA

WA

WV

WI

WY

US

100

4

365

450

2,150

48

8

230

750

930

470

25

9,800

430

115

210

660

50

85

1,000

1,950

1,800

17

25

440

105

560

200

990

5,700

760

160

130

1,450

280

5,550

130

190

1,850

8

250

150

40,575

120

6

820

500

2,500

57

13

360

750

1,000

420

35

10,400

440

235

220

560

65

370

1,050

2,240

2,050

17

31

490

100

630

465

820

5,900

750

170

160

2,100

420

6,200

135

230

1,720

8

290

140

44,987

170

10

870

600

2,400

80

18

480

900

1,200

550

50

9,900

530

400

250

780

70

400

1,200

2,700

1,950

11

34

480

125

800

650

1,020

5,700

780

180

170

1,900

620

6,000

130

280

1,750

12

330

130

46,610

142

167

106

120

96

140

138

133

120

120

131

143

95

120

170

114

139

108

108

114

121

95

65

110

98

125

127

140

124

97

104

106

106

90

148

97

96

122

102

150

114

93

104
Winter Wheat Seedings Agricultural Statistics Board

January 2008 4 NASS, USDA

Durum Wheat: Area Seeded, by State and United States, 2006-2008

State

Crop Year 2008

as Pct. of

2006 2007 2008 2007 1

1,000 Acres 1,000 Acres 1,000 Acres Percent

AZ

CA

ID

MT

ND

SD

US

75

70

15

400

1,300

10

1,870

80

85

15

480

1,480

9

2,149

140

140

175

165

Indicated 2008 area seeded for all six States will be published in “Prospective Plantings” released March 31, 2008. 1
 

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