ST. LOUIS, Mo. — The 2020 growing season was more favorable to Illinois farmers than the previous year, according to the USDA NASS Heartland Regional Field Office.
Corn: Planted area, at 11.3 million acres, is up 8 percent from 2019. Corn for grain was harvested on 11.1 million acres, up 9 percent from the previous year. The corn yield is estimated at 192 bushels per acre, up 11 bushels from 2019. Production is estimated at 2.13 billion bushels, up 15 percent from last year.
Soybeans: Planted area, at 10.30 million acres, up 4 percent from 2019. Harvested area, at 10.25 million acres, is up 4 percent from the previous year. The soybean yield is estimated at 59 bushels per acre, up 5 bushels from 2019. Production is estimated at 605 million bushels, up 14 percent from the previous year.
Winter wheat: Harvested area in 2020 is estimated at 520,000 acres, down 5 percent from the previous year. The winter wheat yield is estimated at 68 bushels per acre, up 1 bushel from 2019. Production is estimated at 35.4 million bushels, down 4 percent from the previous year.
Oats: Harvested area in 2020, at 15,000 acres, is up 5,000 acres from the previous year. The oat yield is estimated at 58 bushels per acre, down 7 bushels from 2019. Production is estimated at 870,000 bushels, up 34 percent from the previous year.
All hay: Harvested area, at 490,000 acres, is up 17 percent from 2019. The all hay yield is estimated at 3.02 tons per acre, up 0.31 ton from the previous year. Production is estimated at 1.48 million tons, 30 percent above 2019.
Nationally, corn for grain production in the United States was estimated at 14.2 billion bushels, up 4 percent from the 2019 estimate. The average yield in the United States was estimated at 172.0 bushels per acre, 4.5 bushels above the 2019 yield of 167.5 bushels per acre. Estimated yields in 2020 were up from the previous year across most of the Northern Plains and Eastern Corn Belt. Record yields were estimated in Georgia, Kentucky, New Mexico, Oregon, and South Dakota. Corn planted area, at 90.8 million acres, was up 1 percent from the 2019 estimate. Area harvested for grain was estimated at 82.5 million acres, up 1 percent from the 2019 estimate.
National soybean production in 2020 totaled 4.14 billion bushels, up 16 percent from 2019. The average yield was estimated at 50.2 bushels per acre, 2.8 bushels above 2019. Planted area for the Nation, at 83.1 million acres, was up 9 percent from the 2019 planted acreage. Soybean growers harvested 82.3 million acres, up 10 percent from 2019. Record high yields occurred in Indiana, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri, New Jersey, and Tennessee.
— USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service
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