Producers in Southwest Oklahoma and Northern Texas have recently been affected by wet weather, muddy field conditions and in some cases excessive winds, which have delayed the normal and customary timeframe for mechanical or chemical termination of crops used for winter grazing (oftentimes small grains). The generally mild winter months along with the weather-related delays may, in some situations, cause producers the inability to fully terminate the crops prior to the onset of some of the plants reaching the headed or budded stage. If not for the wet weather, producers would have been able to terminate the crops timely in the normal and customary timeframes.

The Special Provisions in some counties contain a statement limiting insurability of non-irrigated spring-planted crops following a crop that has reached the headed or budded stage. The following is an example of the referenced Special Provision statement for cotton:

“Insurance shall not attach or be considered to have attached to a planted non-irrigated crop on acreage from which, in the same calendar year:
1. A perennial hay crop was harvested;
2. A crop (other than a cover crop) has reached the headed or budded stage, regardless of the percentage of plants that reached the headed or budded stage; or
3. A crop (other than a cover crop) that is hayed, grazed, or otherwise harvested past March 15.”

The purpose of this Special Provision statement is to assure there is no additional moisture depletion that normally occurs when the crop has reached the headed or budded stage. The termination of plant growth allows for the storage of moisture in the soil for the subsequently-planted spring crop.

Concerns have been raised that producers will not be eligible for insurance for spring-planted crops following crops that were terminated late, due to adverse weather conditions, which may have had some plants reach the headed or budded stage.

The Risk Management Agency has been asked if any relief can be afforded to producers so that insurance can attach to their spring-planted crops. The inability to timely terminate some crops due to the adverse weather conditions and the fact that wet weather has provided ample soil moisture for spring-planted non-irrigated crops mitigates concerns of soil moisture depletion that normally occurs when the crop has reached the headed or budded stage.

For the 2017 crop year, in Southern Oklahoma and Northern Texas, provided the insured producers take adequate and appropriate measures to terminate the crops no later than May 1, 2017, insurance may attach to spring-planted crops following a crop even though some plants may have reached the headed or budded stage.

DISPOSAL DATE:
December 31, 2017