Crop Conditions in the United States showed a mixed late-season picture in the USDA reporting week that ended on September 13, 2026. Corn and soybeans were both rated mostly good to excellent, but both crops stood below year-earlier condition levels. That gap matters because mid-September ratings often shape market expectations just as harvest data begin replacing field estimates.
The signal was not uniformly negative. Corn development was slightly ahead of recent benchmarks, and both corn and soybean harvests had started by mid-September. Still, health ratings showed that 2026 crops entered the early harvest period with less cushion than they had one year earlier. For growers, merchandisers and end users, that makes the next rounds of harvest reports more useful than any single weekly rating.
Crop Conditions Point To Uneven Late-Season Strength
Crop Conditions By Rating Category
As of the week ending September 13, 2026, 57% of the U.S. corn crop was rated good to excellent, up one percentage point from the prior week but 10 points below the 67% rating reported at the same time in 2025, according to DTN’s USDA crop progress report. That year-to-year difference is the clearest caution flag in the corn data.
The category breakdown also shows why the headline number should be read carefully. Corn was reported at 17% very poor to poor, 26% fair, 44% good and 13% excellent as of September 13, based on an IndexBox crop progress summary. A crop with more than half rated good to excellent can still contain a sizable share of weaker acres, especially where late-season heat, moisture stress or local storm damage limited yield potential.
| Crop | Good To Excellent | Year-Earlier Comparison | Key Development Signal |
|---|---|---|---|
| Corn | 57% | 10 points below 2025 | 42% mature by September 13 |
| Soybeans | 58% | 5 points below 2025 | 44% dropping leaves by September 13 |
Why The Year Comparison Matters
Crop Conditions are most useful when compared with prior weeks, prior years and development pace. The 2026 corn rating improved slightly from the previous week, yet it remained well below the same point in 2025. That combination suggests stabilization rather than a clear recovery. In market terms, the data did not point to a sudden collapse, but they also did not support the stronger crop profile seen a year earlier.
Corn Development Shows Harvest Is Underway
Maturity Was Ahead Of Recent Benchmarks
Corn development had moved forward quickly by September 13. The research notes show 86% of the crop had dented, compared with 83% one year earlier and a five-year average of 84%. Maturity reached 42%, ahead of 39% in 2025 and a five-year average of 38%. Those figures indicate that crop development was not lagging nationally, even though condition ratings were weaker than a year earlier.
That distinction is useful for interpreting early harvest reports. Faster maturity can bring fields into harvest sooner, but it does not necessarily mean yields are higher. A crop can mature ahead of average after stress, normal development, or favorable growing degree accumulation. Without final harvested yield data, maturity should be treated as a timing measure rather than a direct production estimate.
Early Harvest Offers The First Field Check
Corn harvest was already underway in the top 13 producing states, with 8% harvested as of September 13. That was just above the 7% pace from 2025 and the five-year average of 6%. Early harvest percentages can be influenced by regional weather, planting dates and maturity, so they should not be overread. Still, they mark the transition from crop ratings toward physical yield evidence.
This early harvest context connects with Agheiro’s related coverage of the U.S. corn harvest and global supplies, where supply timing and export competition were part of the market discussion. As more fields are cut, basis levels, grain quality and local yield reports will give producers a firmer read than condition ratings alone.
Soybeans Hold Slightly Firmer Than Corn
Soybean Ratings Show A Narrower Yearly Gap
Soybeans were rated 58% good to excellent as of September 13, unchanged from the prior week and 5 points below the comparable 2025 level. The gap was smaller than corn’s 10-point year-over-year decline, which points to somewhat steadier soybean health in the national ratings. The category mix was 4% very poor, 9% poor, 29% fair, 46% good and 12% excellent.
That does not mean soybean production risk was absent. Nearly three in ten acres were rated fair, while 13% were rated very poor to poor. In soybeans, late-season rainfall can still influence seed size and final yield in some fields, while early leaf drop may indicate normal maturity in one area and stress in another. The national report gives a broad signal, not a field-by-field diagnosis.
Leaf Drop And Early Harvest Advanced
By September 13, 44% of soybeans had dropped leaves. That was ahead of 38% in 2025 and the five-year average of 37%. Soybean harvest had also begun in 13 states, reaching 6% harvested compared with a five-year average of 3% by mid-September. Those numbers show harvest was moving faster than the usual pace at that point.
For farmers, the practical question is whether faster leaf drop reflected normal crop maturity, late-season stress, or a mix of both depending on location. The national data cannot answer that with precision. Local scouting, moisture testing and harvest monitor data remain necessary for farm-level decisions on cutting order, storage and sales timing.
Market Signals From Health Ratings
Ratings Are Useful But Limited
Crop Conditions do not translate directly into price, yield or revenue. They are one input among many. Grain markets also weigh acreage, harvested area, export demand, domestic feed use, ethanol demand, carryover stocks and global production. A weaker rating can support prices if it points to lower supply, but a large acreage base or slow demand can soften that effect.
For corn, the 57% good-to-excellent rating signaled a crop that was behind last year’s health profile but not in broad failure. For soybeans, the 58% rating suggested a slightly stronger relative position, though still below 2025. The market question after September 13 was whether early harvest results would confirm those rating gaps or reduce their significance.
Clear Communication Helps Reduce Misreads
A cautious reading is especially useful for community decisions. Farmers comparing notes with lenders, landlords, grain buyers and input suppliers need to separate confirmed data from assumptions. Clear reporting standards also matter outside agriculture; readers interested in research and publishing resources may find the related network site Top Ten Writing Services beneficial when seeking comparisons of various writing services.
In grain marketing, the safer approach is to treat weekly USDA ratings as directional evidence. They help identify whether the national crop is improving, holding steady or weakening. They do not replace scale tickets, elevator bids, crop insurance records or measured yield results.
Corn And Soybean Health Ratings
The September 13 data showed two major U.S. crops entering early harvest with reasonable but weaker-than-year-earlier ratings. Corn was 57% good to excellent, 10 points below 2025, while soybeans were 58% good to excellent, 5 points below 2025. Corn maturity and soybean leaf drop were both ahead of recent benchmarks, and harvest had started for both crops.
Crop Conditions therefore pointed to caution rather than alarm. The ratings showed late-season pressure, especially in corn, but they also showed that much of the crop remained in the good or excellent categories. For producers and market watchers, the most reliable next step after September 13 was to compare these ratings with actual harvest results as they became available across the Corn Belt and other producing regions.