The current monitoring period covers the harvesting of wheat as well as the planting and main growing stages for maize and soybean. Problems were reported in part of the Pampas during this period, with flooding in Cordoba, Santa Fé, and northwest Buenos Aires, and drought in southern Buenos Aires province. Some of CropWatch indicators reflect variations in these areas too. Also reported are changes in crop proportion related to changes in the country’s export policies, reducing the planted area of soybean and increasing that of wheat and maize compared to recent years. For the whole country, a large increment of rainfall above average was observed (RAIN, +23%), while temperature (TEMP) dropped 0.7°C and radiation (RADPAR) underwent a small increase (2%), resulting in BIOMSS increasing about 8% over average. Positive temperature anomalies were recorded for December and January, the warmest months of the year, mainly in the major production areas of central and southern Pampas. For the whole country, negative NDVI anomalies have been observed since November 2016.

High positive rainfall departures from average occurred in eastern Argentina including the provinces of Santa Fé (RAIN, +48%), Entre Ríos (+47%), Corrientes (+42%), and Chaco (+37%). The low positive departures observed in Buenos Aires (+7%) and Córdoba (+3%) could be the result of a combination of flooding and drought situations. On the contrary, arid and semi-arid regions of Argentina showed strong negative anomalies: Catamarca (-30%), La Rioja (-37%), and Patagonia (-27%). In general, lower RADPAR values were observed in provinces with the highest RAIN values. Negative NDVI anomalies were observed in the already mentioned “problem areas” of south and northwest Buenos Aires province and part of the province of Córdoba. NDVI anomalies could also be explained by early ripening of winter crops, with crops maturing in December (reflecting more area with reductions in NDVI compared to recent years). The VCI map shows low values in the mentioned problem areas. 

Overall, although this monitoring period recorded above average rainfall, the negative impact of floods and drought in part of the Pampas (confirmed by NDVI and VCI indicators) could result in reduced grain production in Argentina. Wheat production estimates for the country are listed in table B.1 in Annex B.