Corn planted area for all purposes is estimated at 92.9 million acres in 2007, up 19 percent from 2006 and 14 percent higher than 2005.

Farmers increased corn plantings 3 percent from their March intentions, resulting in the highest planted area since 1944 when 95.5 million acres were planted for all purposes. Wet conditions during March and April delayed field preparations and planting activities in the Corn Belt and Great Plains. Conditions dried out considerably in the eastern Corn Belt and Ohio Valley during May allowing producers to make good planting progress, but the lack of precipitation reduced topsoil moisture and increased stress on the crop. Meanwhile, excessive rainfall in parts of the western Corn Belt, central and southern Great Plains, and middle Mississippi Valley during much of May continued to hamper fieldwork. Despite the weather related delays, growers made rapid progress and planting was completed ahead of the average pace. Farmers reported that 99 percent of the intended corn acreage had been planted at the time of the survey interview which is slightly above the average for the past 10 years.

The 2007 soybean planted area is estimated at 64.1 million acres, down 15 percent from last year’s record high. Area for harvest, at 63.3 million acres, is also down 15 percent from 2006. This is the lowest planted and harvested area for soybeans since 1995. With
the exception of New York, Pennsylvania, and the Southeast States, planted acreage decreased in all States across the country. Growers in Illinois and Iowa showed the largest decrease in soybean acreage from last year, down 1.75 million acres and 1.35 million
acres, respectively. Large declines in soybean area occurred across the Corn Belt and Great Plains, with planted acreage also down more than one million acres from last year in Indiana,
Minnesota, and Nebraska. Many farmers across the country shifted to planting more corn this year at the expense of soybeans. However, increases in soybean area occurred across the Southeast, where some farmers shifted from cotton to corn and soybeans. New York and Pennsylvania both set new record high planted areas, at 215,000 and 440,000 acres, respectively. Nationally, farmers reported that 88 percent of the intended soybean acreage had been planted at the time of the survey interview, compared with the average of 81 percent for the past 5 years.

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