Wheat futures rally as weather risks rattle markets

* CBOT wheat at highest point since mid-February

* Dryness in U.S. Plains and Russia support prices

* Technical buying, short covering accelerate gains

CHICAGO, April 22 (Reuters) - U.S. wheat futures rallied to their highest point in more than two months on Monday as crop weather concerns in the Northern Hemisphere supported prices and triggered technical buying and short covering which accelerated the climb, analysts said.

Corn and soybeans followed wheat higher on concerns over Argentine crops and attacks on a Ukrainian grains port.

Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) July wheat gained 23 cents to $5.89-3/4 a bushel by 12:05 p.m. CDT (1705 GMT) after earlier hitting its highest point since Feb. 14.

"There's growing concern about dryness in Russia," said Susan Stroud, founding analyst at NoBullAg.com. A lack of rain in the hard red wheat areas of Colorado and Kansas also supported the market, with 50 million bushels of grain at risk in those areas, she said.

Technical buying and short covering helped extend the weather-fueled trend, said analysts.

"Wheat has been bumping up against 50-day moving averages for a long time," said Dan Anderson of Marex Capital. "I think we finally broke through that."

Analysts said Russian attacks on the port of Pivdennyi in Ukraine's southern Odesa region on Friday caused further stress to the market.

The missile strikes destroyed grain storage facilities and foodstuffs they contained, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and other officials said.

Stroud noted that U.S. corn was becoming more competitive after news of renewed attacks and ongoing problems with corn stunt disease in Argentina, combined with recent U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) data showing increased demand for both ethanol and feed.

CBOT July corn rose 6-3/4 cents to $4.49-3/4 a bushel, while July soybeans were up 13 cents at $11.78-3/4 a bushel.

Traders are awaiting data from the USDA's weekly crop progress and conditions report later on Monday. Analysts polled by Reuters expect further declines in winter wheat ratings following recent dryness in the Plains. (Reporting by Rene Hickman in Chicago Additional reporting by Gus Trompiz in Paris and Naveen Thukral in Singapore Editing by David Evans and Matthew Lewis)