The six U.S. wheat classes:

• hard red winter (HRW) - grown principally in Great Plains area ranging from Montana to Texas
• hard red spring (HRS) - grown mainly in the area of Northern Plains 
• hard white (HW)
• soft red winter (SRW)
• soft white (SW)
• durum - primarily grown in North Dakota and Montana

In the U.S., hard red winter wheat is planted from the first of September through the end of October. In the southern states, winter wheat heads out during May and the harvest begins at the end of May. As the harvest progresses north through the central U.S. winter wheat belt, heading and harvest are pushed back until harvest finishes in the northern states during mid to late August. The major growing areas for hard red winter wheat are located in the mid-west, centering on Kansas, with a belt running from Texas to the Dakotas and Montana.

Soft red winter wheat planting begins around the first of September, with planting running through the end of October. SRW can be expected to start heading around the first of May, with harvesting beginning at the end of May and running through the end of July. Soft red winter wheat is grown east of the Mississippi River.

Soft white winter wheat is planted around the first of September and should be completely in the ground by mid-November. Heading will begin around mid-May, with harvest beginning around mid-July and running through August. Soft white winter wheat is grown in the Pacific Northwest, mainly centered on southern Washington and northern Oregon.

Durum and dark northern spring wheat have pretty much the same growth cycle. They are planted from mid-April through the end of May. DNS and Durum generally begin heading around mid-June, with harvest beginning in mid-July and running through mid-September. Dark northern spring wheat is grown predominately in North Dakota, South Dakota and Montana. Durum is grown almost completely in North Dakota and northeastern Montana, with a small amount grown in northern South Dakota. [SpectrumCommodities]

The top wheat producing states (producing over 1 million tons) include:

1. North Dakota
2. Kansas 
3. Montana
4. South Dakota
5. Washington
6. Idaho
7. Colorado
8. Nebraska
9. Texas
10. Minnesota