HDR1012000170100514961200WEEKLY WEATHER & CROP BULLETIN Released May 14, 1996, by the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), Agricultural Statistics Board, U.S. Department of Agriculture. For information on "Weekly Weather and Crop Bulletin" call Greg Preston at (202) 720-7621, office hours 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. ET. For assistance with general agricultural statistics, information about NASS, its products or services, contact the NASS Information Hotline at 1-800-727-9540 or E-mail: NASS@NASS.USDA.GOV. NATIONAL AGRICULTURAL SUMMARY May 6 - 12, 1996 HIGHLIGHTS: Widespread thunderstorms over the middle Mississippi and Ohio Valleys delayed planting. The heavy rain flooded low-lying fields near streams, creeks, and rivers, and caused some severe soil erosion and terrace damage. The persistent chilly, wet weather slowed crop emergence and development. Low soil temperatures and continued damp conditions in the Midwest left some fields with rotting seeds, requiring many fields to be replanted. Cool, wet fields in the Northern States and Great Lakes region needed warm, sunny weather to allow field activity and planting to proceed. Warm weather across the Southeast allowed germination and fieldwork to advance rapidly. Continued dry, hot weather across the Southwest raised ranchers' concerns as pasture conditions declined. Grazing availability remained limited and water shortages continued in New Mexico. The Nation's winter wheat crop was mostly fair to poor condition, with 40 percent (%) of the acreage heading. The thunderstorms' beneficial moisture slightly improved winter wheat condition over the Central States. The cool weather in the northern half of the Nation slowed wheat progress. Reports of wheat fields plowed under and replanted to other crops continued. Spring wheat seeding was 32% complete, up 10 points from last week but 35 points below the average. The cool wet weather prevented many small grain producers from entering their fields. Spring wheat planting in Minnesota, at 14% complete, was 55 percentage points behind the 5-year average. Spring wheat seeding was over 2 weeks behind schedule in North Dakota. Six percent of the crop was emerged, 28 percentage points behind normal. Corn planting, which was past the halfway mark at 53% complete for the 17 major producing States, was up 12 points from the previous week and 2 points ahead of the 5-year average. Corn planting lagged over 25 points behind normal in Indiana, Kentucky, and Ohio due to the substantial rainfall. The corn planting progress was only up 2 percentage points from the previous week in Indiana and Ohio. Corn producers in Iowa planted close to a third of their acreage during the week despite low soil temperatures. Cotton planting was 54% complete, up 21 points from last week and 4 points ahead of the average for the Nation. Warm weather in the Southeastern States spurred cotton planting. During the week cotton producers made up for delays early in the season and planted over a third of their acreage in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Tennessee. Hot weather in the Southwest aided cotton growth. Cotton fields in California were irrigated and sprayed for insects. Planting continued in the Texas High Plains while poor growing conditions were reported along the Texas Coastal Bend. Sorghum planting was 27% complete for the 12 major producing States, up 4 points from last week. Insect problems required some sorghum fields in Arkansas to be treated or replanted. Dryland sorghum planting in New Mexico was delayed due to the extremely dry soil conditions. Rice seeding was 76% complete, up 15 points from last week and 12 points ahead of the average for the 5 major producing States. Rice fields were treated for broadleaf weeds and water grass in California. Louisiana rice producers were applying pesticides and monitoring their fields for water weevils. Emerged rice fields were flushed in Texas, where rice condition was mostly good. National Weather Summary Volume 83, No. 19 May 5 - 11, 1996 For additional information, call (202) 720-7917. Highlights: Continuing a 3-week trend, an unusually strong polar jet stream bisected the Nation, focusing heavy rainfall and flooding in the Ohio and middle Mississippi Valleys. Weekly rainfall totaled 2 to 6 inches from the east-central Plains to the Northeast, including the Corn Belt (except northwestern areas). Cool weather persisted in the northern half of the Nation, hampering crop development, while heat and drought intensified across the southern Plains and the Southwest. Weekly temperatures ranged from 12 degrees F below normal in the northern Plains to as much as 10 degrees F above normal in the southern High Plains. Warm and drier conditions prevailed in the Southeast. On Sunday, Lexington, KY received 3.02 inches, a daily record and only 0.01 inches shy of their single-day May record (May 1, 1983). A day later, 2.16 inches deluged Little Rock, AR, their greatest 1-day amount since May 13, 1994. Heavy rain shifted briefly northward on Thursday, resulting in a May-record 24-hour total of 3.65 inches in Des Moines, IA. Elsewhere in Iowa, Nichols (Muscatine County) collected a weekly total of 8.85 inches, while Williamsburg (Iowa County) measured 7.29 inches. Farther east, weekly rainfall topped 2 inches in locations such as Columbus, OH, Washington, DC, and Albany, NY. Totals exceeded an inch across the eastern two-thirds of Kansas--25 percent (%) of Wichita's year-to-date total and 31% of Concordia's--further easing long-term drought, but arriving too late to significantly improve winter wheat conditions. Cold air cloaked the northern Plains and Northwest, setting about two dozen daily records. On Sunday, daily-record lows in Montana dipped to 18 degrees F in Butte and 22 degrees F in Missoula. A day later, Great Falls registered 26 degrees F. In parts of Montana, snow accompanied the chill, leaving Thursday-morning depths at 3 inches in Miles City and Browning. On May 7-10, four consecutive daily records were notched in Yakima, WA, including 26 degrees F on Wednesday. In Oregon, among Pendleton's three records in a row was a low of 31 degrees F on Thursday. Sub-freezing temperatures dotted Oregon's Willamette Valley at midweek, where Salem recorded 31 degrees F. On Tuesday, frost was observed in the interior Northeast, where Scranton, PA and Windsor Locks, CT tallied daily-record lows of 31 degrees F. On the Texas plains, both Amarillo (98 degrees F on May 8-9) and Lubbock (98 degrees F on Tuesday; 97 degrees F on Thursday) logged a pair of daily-record highs. Scattered thunderstorms prowled the region after midweek, but provided little drought relief. On Thursday, the storms produced localized high winds, including gusts to 61 mph (and 0.20 inches of rain) in Lubbock and 64 mph in Midland. Thursday's storms also peppered the Plains with damaging hail, including reports in Kansas of 4.5-inch diameter stones near Dodge City and Concordia. Earlier in the week, thunderstorm winds reached 91 mph at Ft. Leonard Wood, MO (on Sunday) and 70 mph in Little Rock, AR (on Monday). As a cold front swept through the East on May 11, thunderstorm winds were clocked to 64 mph in Raleigh-Durham, NC and 60 mph in Richmond, VA. During the week, more than 50 tornadoes were spotted, mostly from the Midwest to Texas. At week's end, heat intensified across the Southwest, where a dozen daily records were broken. In Arizona, Lake Havasu City's high soared to 113 degrees F on Saturday. As of May 13, year-to-date wildfires in drought areas of the Plains and Southwest have charred more than 1.25 million acres (nearly 2000 square miles). Above-normal temperatures also continued in Alaska, where highs rose to 36 degrees F (tying daily records on May 9-10) in Barrow and 72 degrees F (on Saturday) in Anchorage. In Duluth, MN, however, the mercury struggled above 60 degrees F on May 9, their first such occurrence of the year and second-latest on record (May 11, 1950). Midwest Flood Update (as of May 13, 1996): The most serious flooding continued along north-side tributaries of the lower Ohio River, including the White and Wabash River basins. On May 13, the Wabash River at Mount Carmel, IL was 11.5 feet above flood stage (a.f.s.), placing under water much of western Gibson County, Indiana. Farther south, the Wabash stood 4.5 miles wide at New Harmony, IN. Along the mainstem Ohio River, a crest reached Owensboro, KY on May 13 (more than 2 feet a.f.s.), and is forecast to be nearly 16 feet a.f.s. near Shawneetown, IL on May 15 before entering the Mississippi River 2 days later at Cairo, IL. One Mississippi River crest, a product of snowmelt and recent rainfall, reached Muscatine, IA at less than a foot a.f.s. on May 13. Farther downstream, where the middle Mississippi is more significantly above flood stage due to 3 weeks of heavy rain, a crest reached Louisiana, MO (about 6.1 feet a.f.s) on May 13. The crest is forecast to reach St. Louis, MO, 3.3 feet a.f.s., on May 15. The La Moine River, a tributary of the Illinois River (which flows into the Mississippi), posted a record crest (7.8 feet a.f.s.) at Ripley, IL, on May 8. The former record (7.1 feet a.f.s) was set on June 23, 1990. Another Mississippi River tributary, the Big Muddy, stood more than 16 feet a.f.s. at Murphysboro, IL between May 9-13. The Missouri River crested at about a foot a.f.s. on May 10 at Brownville, NE. By May 13, river levels stood 1 to 5 feet a.f.s. downstream of Waverly, MO, with a crest expected at the Mississippi River confluence on May 15. Corn: Percent Planted, Soybeans: Percent Planted, Selected States Selected States -------------------------------------- -------------------------------------- : Week Ending : : Week Ending : :-----------------------: 1991- :-----------------------: 1991- State:May 12,:May 5, :May 12,: 1995 State:May 12,:May 5, :May 12,: 1995 : 1996 : 1996 : 1995 : Avg. : 1996 : 1996 : 1995 : Avg. -------------------------------------- -------------------------------------- : Percent : Percent : : CO : 86 77 13 56 AL : 22 9 18 13 GA : 97 96 99 98 AR : 20 10 6 8 IL : 52 49 30 56 GA : 11 3 14 11 IN : 10 8 35 51 IL : 4 3 2 17 IA : 83 54 24 50 IN : 3 2 10 18 KS : 88 85 32 70 IA : 12 4 1 16 KY : 35 30 73 64 KS : 9 8 1 6 MI : 14 1 23 29 KY : 1 0 7 7 MN : 43 32 45 47 LA : 41 11 23 13 MO : 78 77 27 48 MI : 1 0 3 9 NE : 76 60 16 52 MN : 4 2 6 15 NC : 95 90 95 92 MS : 60 29 33 19 OH : 6 4 39 56 MO : 6 4 0 7 PA : 17 12 41 33 NE : 7 2 0 9 SD : 29 19 2 30 NC : 11 5 10 14 TX : 94 *90 94 93 OH : 0 0 11 22 WI : 24 5 30 33 SC : 8 4 7 7 : SD : 2 0 0 6 17 Sts: 53 41 32 51 TN : 4 1 5 5 -------------------------------------- : * Revised. These 17 States 19 Sts: 9 4 5 14 produced 91% of the 1995 corn crop. -------------------------------------- These 19 States produced 94% of the 1995 soybean crop. Winter Wheat: Percent Headed, Cotton: Percent Planted, Selected States Selected States -------------------------------------- -------------------------------------- : Week Ending : : Week Ending : :-----------------------: 1991- :-----------------------: 1991- State:May 12,:May 5, :May 12,: 1995 State:May 12,:May 5, :May 12,: 1995 : 1996 : 1996 : 1995 : Avg. : 1996 : 1996 : 1995 : Avg. -------------------------------------- -------------------------------------- : Percent : Percent : : AR : 90 66 98 92 AL : 70 49 71 68 CA : 98 97 98 97 AZ : 93 91 95 91 CO : 2 0 0 5 AR : 62 25 25 42 GA : 98 92 99 99 CA : 95 90 81 93 ID : 0 0 0 0 GA : 63 39 70 58 IL : 2 0 44 25 LA : 87 27 79 65 IN : 13 0 35 16 MS : 85 37 60 55 KS : 32 9 35 45 MO : 26 12 17 38 MI : 0 0 0 0 NM : 77 67 64 77 MO : 23 3 43 37 NC : 60 34 63 59 MT : 0 0 0 0 OK : 12 1 9 13 NE : 0 0 0 2 SC : 76 48 60 64 NC : 91 68 93 89 TN : 53 14 41 43 OH : 2 0 0 0 TX : 28 *20 32 34 OK : 91 57 92 87 : OR : 0 0 0 6 14 Sts: 54 33 49 50 SD : 0 0 0 0 -------------------------------------- TX : 82 *68 76 73 These 14 States produced 99% of the WA : 0 0 0 4 1995 cotton crop. : 19 Sts: 40 25 43 43 -------------------------------------- Sorghum: Percent Planted, These 19 States produced 92% of the Selected States 1995 winter wheat crop. -------------------------------------- : Week Ending : :-----------------------: 1991- State:May 12,:May 5, :May 12,: 1995 : 1996 : 1996 : 1995 : Avg. -------------------------------------- : Percent : AR : 72 57 57 59 CO : 26 0 1 8 IL : 0 0 0 6 KS : 10 7 2 6 LA : 71 51 57 57 MS : 73 66 72 60 MO : 11 9 12 18 NE : 5 2 0 6 NM : 1 1 2 13 OK : 10 8 9 13 SD : 4 0 0 2 TX : 63 60 72 69 : 12 Sts: 27 23 25 27 -------------------------------------- These 12 States produced 98% of the 1995 sorghum crop. Spring Wheat: Percent Planted, Rice: Percent Planted, Selected States Selected States -------------------------------------- -------------------------------------- : Week Ending : : Week Ending : :-----------------------: 1991- :-----------------------: 1991- State:May 12,:May 5, :May 12,: 1995 State:May 12,:May 5, :May 12,: 1995 : 1996 : 1996 : 1995 : Avg. : 1996 : 1996 : 1995 : Avg. -------------------------------------- -------------------------------------- : Percent : Percent : : ID : 86 74 85 85 AR : 80 61 76 64 MN : 14 12 24 69 CA : 30 10 17 30 MT : 59 39 64 77 LA : 90 83 89 81 ND : 16 8 11 59 MS : 93 79 93 66 SD : 65 60 18 78 TX : 88 *83 81 85 : : 5 Sts : 32 22 29 67 5 Sts : 76 61 71 64 -------------------------------------- -------------------------------------- These 5 States produced 96% of the These 5 States produced 96% of the 1995 spring wheat crop. 1995 rice crop. Spring Wheat: Percent Emerged, Rice: Percent Emerged, Selected States Selected States -------------------------------------- -------------------------------------- : Week Ending : : Week Ending : :-----------------------: 1991- :-----------------------: 1991- State:May 12,:May 5, :May 12,: 1995 State:May 12,:May 5, :May 12,: 1995 : 1996 : 1996 : 1995 : Avg. : 1996 : 1996 : 1995 : Avg. -------------------------------------- -------------------------------------- : Percent : Percent : : ID : 65 51 66 67 AR : 56 31 58 45 MN : 4 1 8 38 CA : 5 0 4 4 MT : 7 2 20 33 LA : 75 68 79 73 ND : 1 0 3 27 MS : 78 61 80 52 SD : 15 5 7 61 TX : 77 73 66 65 : : 5 Sts : 6 3 10 34 5 Sts : 56 41 57 47 -------------------------------------- -------------------------------------- These 5 States produced 96% of the These 5 States produced 96% of the 1995 spring wheat crop. 1995 rice crop. Barley: Percent Planted, Oats: Percent Planted, Selected States Selected States -------------------------------------- -------------------------------------- : Week Ending : : Week Ending : :-----------------------: 1991- :-----------------------: 1991- State:May 12,:May 5, :May 12,: 1995 State:May 12,:May 5, :May 12,: 1995 : 1996 : 1996 : 1995 : Avg. : 1996 : 1996 : 1995 : Avg. -------------------------------------- -------------------------------------- : Percent : Percent : : ID : 78 65 73 81 IA : 100 96 81 86 MN : 11 6 20 65 MI : 36 22 77 68 MT : 53 35 61 73 MN : 73 58 61 77 ND : 12 5 7 60 NE : 100 99 94 97 SD : 54 39 9 72 ND : 7 5 7 56 WA : 84 58 91 90 OH : 57 51 31 63 : PA : 64 59 84 81 6 Sts : 36 25 35 69 SD : 63 53 16 72 -------------------------------------- WI : 53 28 71 64 These 6 States produced 82% of the : 1995 barley crop. 9 Sts : 61 51 55 73 -------------------------------------- These 9 States produced 56% of the Barley: Percent Emerged, 1995 oat crop. Selected States -------------------------------------- : Week Ending : Oats: Percent Emerged, :-----------------------: 1991- Selected States State:May 12,:May 5, :May 12,: 1995 -------------------------------------- : 1996 : 1996 : 1995 : Avg. : Week Ending : -------------------------------------- :-----------------------: 1991- : Percent State:May 12,:May 5, :May 12,: 1995 : : 1996 : 1996 : 1995 : Avg. ID : 45 34 45 58 -------------------------------------- MN : 3 1 4 28 : Percent MT : 8 5 20 32 : ND : 0 0 1 27 IA : 80 52 57 73 SD : 12 2 3 55 MI : 3 0 24 38 WA : 55 40 68 73 MN : 20 6 24 46 : NE : 91 79 0 NA 6 Sts : 12 8 16 36 ND : 0 0 1 25 -------------------------------------- OH : 42 28 70 67 These 6 States produced 82% of the PA : 46 30 0 NA 1995 barley crop. SD : 30 10 8 57 WI : 19 4 0 NA : 9 Sts: 35 20 20 51 -------------------------------------- These 9 States produced 56% of the 1995 oats crop. Peanuts: Percent Planted, Selected States -------------------------------------- : Week Ending : :-----------------------: 1991- State:May 12,:May 5, :May 12,: 1995 : 1996 : 1996 : 1995 : Avg. -------------------------------------- : Percent : AL : 48 29 62 60 FL : 65 35 NA NA GA : 69 41 76 65 NC : 30 10 37 41 OK : 14 9 5 13 SC : 85 55 49 66 TX : 20 6 8 8 VA : 45 25 66 66 : 8 Sts : 48 27 51 47 -------------------------------------- These 8 States produced 99% of the 1995 peanut crop. Winter Wheat: Crop Condition by Percent, Selected States -------------------------------------- State : VP : P : F : G : EX -------------------------------------- : Percent : AR : 0 5 23 52 20 CA : 0 0 15 65 20 CO : 12 17 37 30 4 GA : 0 5 22 63 10 ID : 0 1 9 58 32 IL : 31 32 25 11 1 IN : 12 23 33 28 4 KS : 31 29 27 13 0 MI : 20 26 30 21 3 MO : 23 28 31 17 1 MT : 10 14 24 43 9 NE : 8 24 43 24 1 NC : 0 2 20 71 7 OH : 10 26 37 23 4 OK : 31 32 24 12 1 OR : 0 0 6 35 59 SD : 10 23 36 28 3 TX : 33 36 25 6 0 WA : 0 0 7 64 29 : 19 Sts : 22 24 26 23 5 : Prev Wk : 22 26 26 22 4 Prev Yr : 5 13 28 43 11 -------------------------------------- Rice: Crop Condition by Percent, Selected States -------------------------------------- State : VP : P : F : G : EX -------------------------------------- : Percent : AR : 0 5 24 63 8 CA : 0 0 10 80 10 LA : 0 6 50 41 3 MS : 0 5 33 40 22 TX : 0 5 40 53 2 : 5 Sts : 0 4 29 59 8 : Prev Wk : NA NA NA NA NA Prev Yr : 0 0 0 0 0 -------------------------------------- Pasture and Range: Crop Condition by Percent, Selected States -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- State : VP : P : F : G : EX :: State : VP : P : F : G : EX -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Percent :: : Percent : :: : AL : 2 7 42 44 5 :: NJ : 0 0 70 30 0 AZ : 32 45 15 8 0 :: NM : 41 46 10 3 0 AR : 0 22 45 31 2 :: NY : 0 19 26 31 24 CA : 0 0 25 50 25 :: NC : 1 2 18 75 4 CO : 10 21 35 32 2 :: ND : 3 13 33 46 5 CT : 0 0 25 75 0 :: OH : 2 14 40 39 5 DE : 0 0 27 72 1 :: OK : 17 31 38 14 0 FL : 0 15 45 40 0 :: OR : 0 0 3 85 12 GA : 1 4 32 58 5 :: PA : 0 7 25 53 15 ID : 0 2 9 58 31 :: RI : 0 7 26 17 50 IL : 2 11 37 45 5 :: SC : 1 2 22 60 15 IN : 1 9 37 44 9 :: SD : 1 10 40 44 5 IA : 3 19 43 32 3 :: TN : 2 11 34 48 5 KS : 14 25 41 19 1 :: TX : 23 37 32 8 0 KY : 2 8 30 48 12 :: UT : 1 14 32 45 8 LA : 2 9 38 48 3 :: VT : 0 20 43 37 0 ME : 0 2 33 36 29 :: VA : 0 2 21 66 11 MD : 0 1 19 66 14 :: WA : 0 5 40 50 5 MA : 5 9 30 54 2 :: WV : 1 14 40 42 3 MI : 9 28 39 19 5 :: WI : 3 21 39 35 2 MN : 5 22 43 27 3 :: WY : 0 0 37 52 11 MS : 0 9 36 47 8 :: : MO : 2 20 46 29 3 :: 48 Sts : 7 17 34 36 6 MT : 0 12 36 49 3 :: : NE : 6 18 44 31 1 :: Prev Wk: 7 20 35 32 6 NV : 2 2 36 50 10 :: Prev Yr: 1 7 30 50 12 NH : 1 33 48 17 1 :: : -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- VP - Very Poor P - Poor F - Fair G - Good Ex - Excellent