Sunflower Highlights

Post Date: Sep 11 2023

Crop Progress - Monday, September 11, 2023

State	This Week	Last Week	Last Year	5 Year Average
North Dakota
Petals Dry	81	64	75	82
Bracts Yellow	48	30	47	55
Mature	14	8	18	18
South Dakota
Petals Dry	75	40	--	--
Bracts Yellow	33	5	--	--
Texas
Harvested	NA	55	65	54

Crop Conditions - Monday, September 11, 2023

State	Timeframe	Very Poor	Poor	Fair	Good	Excellent
North Dakota	This week	1	5	30	60	4
	Last week	1	6	32	55	6
Minnesota	This week	0	4	37	58	1
	Last week	0	4	32	63	1
Colorado	This week	0	1	11	83	5
	Last week	0	0	10	77	13
South Dakota	This week	2	5	43	47	3
	Last week	2	5	47	42	4

Grower Report

Cooperstown, North Dakota grower Scott Tranby says his sunflowers look pretty good, with most of them being filled to the center. His sunflowers have started to drop petals and he plans to desiccate in the next week or so. This year he sprayed for red seed weevil and he did not have any disease issues. A week ago, he received about a 1” of rain. He hopes to start harvest October 1st.

Research grant applications being accepted

Research is an important part of the NSA’s mission. Each year, the NSA provides grants to public researchers to stimulate new or additional work that may result in lower production costs, increased quality, and higher yields. Pre-proposals for projects to be considered for funding in 2024 are now being accepted. Visit 2024 NSA Research Priorities (sunflowernsa.com) to read more and to submit pre-proposals. Grant applications are due by October 3, 2023.

Markets

Markets are awaiting fresh USDA data that will be released on Tuesday that will provide more insights as to how 2023 production and ending supplies could shake out. In addition, USDA Farm Service Agency will update its reported acreage data for all crops. This will give the sunflower market another look at acres ahead of the USDA October production report which will provide its first estimate for oil and non-oil sunflower production. Sunflower prices continue to move lower as the market transitions toward the 2023/24 market year. Moving forward, it may be hard to gather significant forward momentum as carryover oil-type seed stocks are projected to be above the five-year average as well as seasonal harvest pressure being just around the corner. The 2023 US sunflower crop continues to progress at a faster pace after a slow start this spring. Very warm to hot temperatures along with drier soil conditions are pushing the crop toward maturity in the Dakotas and Minnesota. Some of the crop could be desiccated in early September for harvest. Most of the crops in these states are considered in good to excellent condition. This should mean that yields will be above trend assuming normal weather through the rest of this fall and the lack of an early freeze. Above normal rainfall this season has most of the sunflower crop in Colorado rated in good to excellent condition as well. Mid-August through September is the critical time frame for sunflowers.

Consider cattail control

Now is a good time to remove blackbird roosting locations, such as cattails. Cattails serve as blackbird habitat, so it is in the sunflower producer’s best interest to get rid of as much as possible. The USDA can help with blackbird control. Visit: NORTH DAKOTA (sunflowernsa.com) for a map with phone numbers for USDA Wildlife Services personnel that can help North and South Dakota producers who have blackbird problems. They will respond to you during the damage season by providing loaner cannons and pyrotechnics. These offices will provide further assistance in an attempt to break up large roosts. Using a combination of cattail management, cannons, harassment, desiccants, and repellants can be even more effective when used together. For more information on blackbird control, visit Blackbirds (sunflowernsa.com)

Reduce the risk of combine fires

Sunflower is an oil-based crop, and fine fibers from sunflower seeds pose a constant fire hazard. To help reduce the risk this harvest season, be sure to keep a clean work area when harvesting sunflower. Blow the combine and grain dryer setup with an air hose daily. Also, try nighttime harvesting, when humidity levels are higher and keep a small pressure sprayer filled with water on hand in the combine. For more tips, visit Combine Fire Responses (sunflowernsa.com)

Upcoming Events

January 10-11, 2024 - NSA Research Forum; Holiday Inn; Fargo, ND
June 25-27, 2024 - NSA Summer Seminar; Duluth, MN

Markets at a Glance

Weekly Prices Recorded on Monday, September 11, 2023 ($/CWT)

	Deliver	Last Year	Last Week	This Week	Change	2024 NEW Crop
Chicago Oil	Nearby	71.92	66.00	63.15	-2.85	60.50
West Fargo, ND	NuSun	26.45	NQ	NQ	unch	NQ
West Fargo, ND	High Oleic	27.45	19.00	19.00	unch	NQ
Enderlin, ND	NuSun	26.20	NQ	NQ	unch	NQ
Enderlin, ND	High Oleic	27.20	NQ	NQ	unch	NQ
Lamar, CO	High Oleic	27.75	19.60	19.50	-.10	NQ

U.S. CRUDE OIL VALUES recorded on Monday, September 11, 2023
(dollars per 100 lb. internal U.S. locations)

	Last Year	Last Week	This Week	Change
Soybean Oil	76.34	70.76	66.84	-3.92
Cotton Oil (pbsy)	118.34	99.26	96.34	-3.92
Corn Oil	131.00	75.00	75.00	unch

Prices recorded here are believed to be reliable at the time of posting. All prices are subject to change. Contact these facilities for complete market details.

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