HDR1012000170101203961200WEEKLY WEATHER & CROP BULLETIN Released December 3, 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 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. ET. For assistance with general agricultural statistics, information about NASS, its products or services, contact the Agricultural Statistics Hotline at 1-800-727-9540 or E-mail: NASS@NASS.USDA.GOV. NATIONAL AGRICULTURAL SUMMARY November 25 - December 1, 1996 HIGHLIGHTS: Harvest activity and small grain seeding was slowed by another week of low temperatures and wet weather across the Eastern States. Heavy snowfall across the southern and central Great Plains brought much-needed moisture for the small grains, but prevented producers from completing the row-crop harvest. The lateness of small-grain seedings combined with early snow accumulation raised producers' concerns in the Northern States. In the Dakotas, deep snow restricted grazing and access to hay in the fields, forcing producers to begin using feed supplies earlier than normal. The continued cool, wet weather slowed the dry down of Midwestern row crops remaining in the field. Excessive rainfall in the Delta caused harvest activity to fall behind schedule. Showers over the mid-Atlantic restricted harvesting but improved small grains and pastures. Heavy rains in the Pacific Northwest slowed tree pruning and caused some flooding. Wet fields in California from the previous week's storm prevented some growers from planting field crops. Christmas tree producers in the Great Lakes and Northeast were busy harvesting and hauling trees to market. Winter wheat ended the season in mostly good to fair condition. Snow across the central and southern Great Plains brought much-needed moisture, but more was needed. In the Mountain States, late-planted wheat was slow to emerge due to the low temperatures, but was protected by the adequate snowpack. Producers in the Great Lakes region and eastern Corn Belt were concerned that late-planted wheat was susceptible to damage from heaving and the freezing temperatures that following the mid-week rains. Low temperatures in the southern Great Plains reduced insect problems. Corn harvested at 96% complete was up 3 points from last week, 1 point ahead of normal. The harvest was virtually complete in the Corn Belt except for isolated fields. The cool, wet weather slowed the dry down of corn remaining for harvest in the Corn Belt, while wet conditions and lodging slowed harvest progress in the eastern Corn Belt. Corn harvested in Ohio, at 85% complete, was up 9 points from last week, but 7 points behind the average. Cotton acreage harvested was estimated at 87%, up 5 points from last week. Cotton growers in Arizona had harvested 82% of their acreage, up 4 points from the previous week, but 14 points behind the average. In Oklahoma, the cotton harvest crossed the halfway mark, but was 16 points behind schedule. The cotton harvest in Texas at 75% complete was slowed by damp mornings and wet conditions. In the Texas High Plains, producers welcomed the freezing temperatures, which should aid the harvest. In California, second picking was underway except for fields that had lint stained by rain. Plowdown in California for pink bollworm control was delayed by wet fields. Soybean acreage harvested, at 96%, was up 2 points from last week but 2 points less than the average. In Tennessee, the soybean harvest was 77% complete, over 2 weeks behind normal, due to delays from persistent rainy weather. In North Carolina, the harvest was 73% complete, up 15 points from last week. Harvest activity was slowed in the Delta by widespread rainstorms. National Weather Summary Volume 83, No. 48 November 24 - 30, 1996 For additional information, call (202) 720-7917. Highlights: Energetic storm systems continued to traverse the Nation, sparking significant precipitation from Texas to the Northeast and across the Northwest. Weekly totals topped 4 inches west of the Cascades and from northeastern Texas to the southern Appalachians. Late in the week, snowfall blanketed mountainous portions of the Four Corners States. Farther east, the season's first snowfall struck parts of the Northeast before Thanksgiving, while a narrow stripe of heavy snow affected areas from the southern High Plains to the Great Lakes States at week's end. Between storms, the last and strongest in a series of arctic high-pressure systems pushed through the northern Plains and Midwest before settling over the East Coast, resulting in more than two dozen daily-record lows. Meanwhile, the Southwest's recent warm spell came to an end. Early in the week, a storm tracked from the southern Plains to New England. Arctic air swept southward through the Plains in the storm's wake. In Texas, snowfall on Sunday locally topped 10 inches in parts of Edwards and Kerr Counties. Damaging amounts of freezing rain accumulated from northeastern Texas to the Ozark Plateau. Farther east, about a dozen tornadoes accompanied strong thunderstorms across the Southeast. In eastern Oklahoma, rainfall in excess of 4 inches lifted the Poteau River to record crests at Poteau and Panama. And in the Northeast, November snowfall records were established in Cleveland, OH (23.4 inches) and Rochester, NY (24.9 inches), as weekly totals reached 2.6 and 13.3 inches, respectively. In New England, totals reached 1.8 inches in Boston, MA, their first accumulation of the season, and 6.7 inches in Burlington, VT. Meanwhile, daily-record rainfalls dotted the East on Tuesday, including 2.17 inches in Bridgeport, CT and 1.91 inches in New York City's Central Park. In North Dakota, Williston (-27 degrees F) notched a November-record low on Sunday. The bitterly cold air persisted through midweek, when Minneapolis, MN recorded -11 degrees F. A day earlier, daily records had been set in Aberdeen, SD (-24 degrees F) and Fargo, ND (-19 degrees F), as well as the southern Texas cities of Victoria (33 degrees F) and Del Rio (32 degrees F). Tuesday's low of -12 degrees F in Rochester, MN was their lowest in November since 1977. Deep snow cover continued to protect winter wheat on the northern Plains from the extreme cold, but on the central High Plains--where a 2-month dry spell continued--lows dipped into the single digits on November 24-25. Snow continued to fall for much of the week in the interior Northwest. Another 14.2 inches buried Kalispell, MT, boosting their November snowfall to 48.5 inches. In eastern Washington, weekly totals included 4.5 inches in Hanford and 6.4 inches in Spokane. West of the Cascades, weekly rainfall reached 6.40 inches in Quillayute, WA and 4.80 inches in Astoria, OR. Farther south, heavy snow developed over parts of the Southwest toward week's end. The snow depth near Wolf Creek Pass, CO, rose to 75 inches by month's end, up from 36 inches a week earlier. In southwestern Utah, Brian Head received 31 inches in 24 hours on November 28-29. Late in the week, the arctic high-pressure system exited the East. In a final flurry of daily records, lows on Thursday fell to 11 degrees F in Rochester, NY and 21 degrees F in Asheville, NC. Meanwhile, precipitation developed on the southern Plains, easing recent dryness in most locations. Rain quickly spread into the East at week's end, with snow confined to a narrow band from the southern Plains to the western Great Lakes region. On November 30, the month's first snowfall struck locations such as Amarillo, TX (8.0 inches), Wichita, KS (4.6 inches), and Kansas City, MO (4.8 inches). Enough precipitation fell in Duluth, MN to boost their monthly total to a November-record 5.38 inches. Farther south, rain returned to previously drenched areas, causing some additional flooding. In Memphis, TN, 6.03 inches of their 7.87-inch weekly total fell on November 29-30. Corn: Percent Harvested, Soybeans: Percent Harvested, Selected States Selected States -------------------------------------- -------------------------------------- : Week Ending : : Week Ending : :-----------------------: 1991- :-----------------------: 1991- State:Dec 1, :Nov 24,:Dec 1, : 1995 State:Dec 1, :Nov 24,:Dec 1, : 1995 : 1996 : 1996 : 1995 : Avg. : 1996 : 1996 : 1995 : Avg. -------------------------------------- -------------------------------------- : Percent : Percent : : CO : 100 98 97 95 AL : 88 84 90 90 GA : 100 100 100 100 AR : 75 75 100 98 IL : 97 96 100 96 GA : 85 76 78 81 IN : 93 90 100 93 IL : 100 99 100 100 IA : 97 95 100 96 IN : 99 98 100 100 KS : 99 99 100 98 IA : 100 100 100 100 KY : 98 97 99 99 KS : 94 92 100 99 MI : 93 85 100 82 KY : 95 92 99 99 MN : 98 97 99 96 LA : 100 100 100 99 MO : 95 92 99 96 MI : 99 98 100 97 NE : 97 95 100 95 MN : 99 99 99 99 NC : 100 100 100 100 MS : 99 97 100 96 OH : 85 76 100 92 MO : 93 90 100 97 PA : 89 79 99 84 NE : 100 100 100 100 SD : 94 93 100 93 NC : 73 58 62 68 TX : 100 100 100 100 OH : 99 93 100 100 WI : 90 85 100 89 SC : 71 63 54 62 : SD : 100 100 100 100 17 Sts: 96 93 100 95 TN : 77 68 93 94 -------------------------------------- : These 17 States produced 93% of the 19 Sts: 96 94 98 98 1995 corn crop. -------------------------------------- These 19 States produced 94% of the 1995 soybean crop. Cotton: Percent Harvested, Selected States -------------------------------------- : Week Ending : :-----------------------: 1991- State:Dec 1, :Nov 24,:Dec 1, : 1995 : 1996 : 1996 : 1995 : Avg. -------------------------------------- : Percent : AL : 93 91 97 94 AZ : 82 78 89 96 AR : 95 95 100 100 CA : 95 90 94 98 GA : 91 86 87 87 LA : 100 100 100 100 MS : 100 99 100 99 MO : 95 88 99 98 NM : 90 81 82 78 NC : 90 85 86 86 OK : 51 41 74 67 SC : 95 92 83 89 TN : 97 96 98 98 TX : 75 69 76 74 : 14 Sts: 87 82 87 87 -------------------------------------- These 14 States produced 99% of the 1995 cotton crop. Winter Wheat: Crop Condition by Percent, Selected States -------------------------------------- State : VP : P : F : G : EX -------------------------------------- : Percent : AR : 2 12 45 35 6 CA : 0 0 30 60 10 CO : 1 3 21 55 20 GA : 0 1 15 80 4 ID : 0 0 10 64 26 IL : 0 3 19 63 15 IN : 0 1 23 56 20 KS : 0 1 9 73 17 MI : 1 4 30 57 8 MO : 0 3 36 53 8 MT : 0 6 58 34 2 NE : 0 2 27 64 7 NC : 0 1 27 65 7 OH : 1 4 26 54 15 OK : 0 2 14 78 6 OR : 0 0 43 50 7 SD : 0 3 25 61 11 TX : 3 9 26 52 10 WA : 0 9 27 64 0 : 19 Sts : 1 3 21 64 11 : Prev Wk : 0 3 24 62 11 Prev Yr : 3 12 36 44 5 -------------------------------------- Note: US level crop conditions are weighted averages based on 1995 planted acres for the selected states. The next "Weekly Weather and Crop Bulletin" report will be released in April 1997. 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