CONDITIONS: Even though farmers have planted the largest wheat crop in the past six years, it emerged from winter in strained conditions — akin to those at this point in 1996 and 2018, which led to lackluster harvests those years. The main agronomic issue is of course the lack of moisture across widespread acreage, where dry soils received among the lowest winter precipitation ever recorded. April and May moisture will be critical, as noted by members of our expert panel starting on page 4. They also respond to volatile market conditions compounded by global factors and other pressures/ costs hitting producers locally.