1.   This was mid-June, and in the nearby fields, next season s crops were maturing.

2.   Because oil accumulates in canola seeds relatively late in development, farmers usually wait until the crop matures before harvesting it.

3.   Drier weather in Cuba and Thailand as sugar cane crops matured reduced the size and quality of the harvests, traders said.

4.   Meantime, dry weather in Cuba and Thailand as sugar cane crops matured likely reduced the size and quality of those harvests, traders said.

5.   The seemingly inexplicable weather patterns this winter have also confounded western farmers, who watched their crops mature too early and then suffer from a cold snap.

6.   The smaller crop is the result of unusually dry weather when the crop was maturing.

7.   The unseasonably cool temperatures renewed concern that slow development has left corn crops less mature than usual for this time of year, increasing their vulnerability to frost.

8.   USDA figures release Monday after trading showed the U.S. winter wheat crop was maturing early and in good shape before the spring freeze blanketed the Plains over the weekend.

9.   Concerns that crops have matured too quickly are balanced by the recent run of good drying weather.