Wisconsin Ag Connection - USDA Releases 2012 Crop Production Totals for Wisconsin

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USDA Releases 2012 Crop Production Totals for Wisconsin
Wisconsin Ag Connection - 01/17/2013

Despite a topsy-turvy year with the weather and continued drought conditions, Wisconsin crop producers were able to bring in a decent harvest this past year. The Wisconsin Ag Statistics Service has posted its annual crop summary from the 2012 growing year this week. The figures, where were provided from the USDA, show that Wisconsin farmers planted 4.35 million acres to corn in 2012, a 200,000 acre increase from the previous year. Of those acres, 3.30 million were harvested for grain with a yield of 121 bushels per acre.

This year's corn crop produced 399 million bushels. Silage area harvested increased 175,000 acres, rising to 980,000 acres in 2012. Corn silage acres yielded 14.5 tons per acre. Silage production was 14.2 million tons this season, down from 15.7 million tons in 2011. The national corn for grain production was estimated at 10.8 billion bushels, down from 12.4 billion bushels in 2011. The average yield in the United States for 2012 was estimated at 123.4 bushels per acre. This is 23.8 bushels below the 2011 average yield of 147.2 bushels.

Planted acreage for soybeans in Wisconsin totaled 1.71 million acres, up from 1.62 million acres in 2011. Area of soybeans harvested for beans was 1.70 million acres in 2012. Statewide soybean yield was 41.5 bushels per acre, down 5 bushels from 2012. The 2012 soybean crop produced 70.6 million bushels, down 6 percent from the previous year.

Wisconsin winter wheat production for 2012 was 18.4 million bushels, down 16 percent from 21.8 million bushels in 2011. Winter wheat acres planted decreased 80,000 acres from the previous year to 265,000 acres, while harvested acres also decreased by 90,000 acres to 245,000 acres. The 2012 Wisconsin winter wheat yield of 75 bushels per acre was up 10 bushels from 2011. Oats acreage totaled 220,000 in 2012, up nearly 5 percent from 2011. There were 130,000 acres harvested--an increase of 15,000 acres from the previous year. The 2012 oat yield was 60.0 bushels per acre, down 2 bushels from the previous year. The increase in acres harvested resulted in a 9 percent increase in total production compared to last year. At 7.8 million bushels produced, Wisconsin was the second largest oat producing state in 2012, after Minnesota. U.S. oat production totaled 64.0 million bushels, up 10.4 million bushels from 2011.

Growers in the Badger State produced 660,000 bushels of barley in 2012, down 6 percent from 2011 and down 54 percent from 2010. Area planted to barley, at 33,000 acres, was the same as last year, as was area harvested, at 15,000 acres. Yield was down 3 bushels from the previous year to 44 bushels per acre.

Farmers harvested 1.05 million acres of alfalfa and alfalfa mixture dry hay in 2012, down from 1.15 million acres in 2011. Yield decreased from 2.80 tons per acre in 2011 to 2.30 tons per acre in 2012. Alfalfa and alfalfa mixture dry hay production was 2.41 million tons, down from 3.22 million tons a year ago. Alfalfa haylage and greenchop was harvested from 1.10 million acres in Wisconsin during 2012, down from 1.25 million acres in 2011. Yield (green weight) was 6.20 tons per acre in 2012, down from 7.00 tons per acres in 2011. Statewide alfalfa haylage and greenchop production was 6.82 million tons, down 22 percent from 8.75 million tons a year ago. All other hay harvested as dry hay accounted for 400,000 acres in Wisconsin in 2012, down 50,000 acres from 2011. Yield was 1.50 tons per acre in 2012, down from 1.90 tons per acre a year ago.

Area farmers planted 64,500 acres of fall potatoes in 2012. Area harvested was 64,000 acres, up from 62,500 acres harvested in 2011. Potatoes yielded 460 hundredweight per acre, up from 415 cwt. per acre in 2011. Wisconsin's production was 29.4 million cwt., ranking third in fall potato production behind Idaho and Washington.

Dry beans planted in Wisconsin during 2012 totaled 5,200 acres, down 100 acres from 2011. The number of acres harvested in 2012 was 5,200 acres. State dry bean production in 2012 totaled 101,000 cwt., with a yield of 1,940 pounds per acre. Wisconsin produces mostly dark red kidney beans and ranked second in the nation for the production of those beans.

And there were 4,000 acres of peppermint and 400 acres of spearmint produced in Wisconsin last year. Peppermint yielded 66 pounds per acre and spearmint yielded 68 pounds per acre, compared to 60 pounds per acre and 50 pounds per acre, respectively, in 2011. Peppermint production, at 264,000 pounds, was up 26 percent from the previous year, while spearmint production, at 27,000, was up 80 percent.

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