Released November 17, 1998 by the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) Agricultural Statistics Board, U.S. Department of Agricultural. For information on "Weekly Weather & Crop Bulletin" call Mark E. Miller at (202) 720-7621, office hours 7:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. ET. National Weather Summary Volume 85, No. 46 November 8 - 14, 1998 For additional information, call (202) 720-7917. Highlights: An extremely powerful storm system delivered high winds and heavy snowfall to the northern Plains and upper Midwest, halting late summer-crop harvesting and lodging crops in some fields. Rain disrupted fieldwork in the remainder of the Midwest, but improved soil moisture in the Southeast. A second storm crossed the South after midweek, briefly disrupting cotton harvesting in California and southern Arizona. Heavy rain (2 to 10 inches) erupted across eastern Texas and portions of Louisiana on Thursday, continuing through week's end. Lowland flooding returned to some areas in southeastern Texas still recovering from the mid- to late-October flood. Rain also overspread the Pacific Northwest late in the week, easing dryness. Weekly temperatures ranged from 2 to 6 degrees F below normal in areas affected by the snowstorm, and were as much as 5 degrees F below normal in eastern Texas. In California and the Southwest, where cooler-than-normal weather prevailed for the seventh time in 8 weeks, temperatures averaged 3 to 7 degrees F below normal. In contrast, departures reached +7 degrees F above normal in parts of the Southeast. Early in the week, a developing storm tracked from the Intermountain West to the central Plains. Cool air trailed the system into the West, resulting in several daily-record lows. On Sunday, Klamath Falls, OR noted 14 degrees F. Two days later, Chatsworth, CA reported 39 degrees F. Meanwhile, warm air streamed northward across the East. On Tuesday, highs reached 70 degrees F in Beckley, WV and Akron- Canton, OH, setting daily records. Wilmington, NC notched 83 degrees F a day later. Toward week's end, much warmer air arrived across the Western and Central States. As warmer air entered the northern High Plains on Friday, winds in Montana gusted to 76 mph in Browning and 68 mph in Choteau. On Saturday, Ely, NV posted a daily record-tying high of 66 degrees F. After reaching the central Plains on Monday, the low-pressure system turned northeastward and intensified explosively, becoming the strongest storm on record (in terms of minimum barometric pressure) in Iowa and Minnesota. On Tuesday, pressures dipped to 28.54 inches in Iowa (at Spencer and Estherville) and 28.43 inches in Minnesota (at Austin and Albert Lea). Non-thunderstorm wind gusts were clocked to 93 mph in LaCrosse, WI, 68 mph in Waterloo, IA, 63 mph in Springfield, IL, and 60 mph in Grand Island, NE. On Lake Michigan, wave heights on the night of November 10-11 reached 20.3 feet at a buoy 45 miles west of Holland, MI. In northwestern Lake Huron, a gust to 95 mph was reported on Mackinac Island, MI. Meanwhile, November 8-10 snowfall totaled 13.4 inches in Sioux Falls, SD and 10.9 inches in Bismarck, ND. Month-to-date snowfall in Rapid City, SD reached 21.3 inches, second only to a 33.6- inch November total in 1985. In the storm's wake, temperatures dipped to the freezing mark (32 degrees F) on Wednesday as far south as Lubbock, TX and Carlsbad, NM. A day later, Williston, ND recorded -6 degrees F. In southeastern Texas, November 12-14 rainfall in Victoria totaled 8.44 inches, boosting their monthly total to a November-record 9.98 inches. Their previous November record had been 8.68 inches in 1982. Monthly rainfall reached 9.94 inches in Houston, TX, aided by a 4.68-inch total on Thursday. Widespread lowland flooding affected the region, especially in areas recovering from the October deluge. For example, the San Bernard River at Boling, TX surged to 18.5 feet above flood stage (and was still slowly rising) on Monday, November 16, but remained about 6.2 feet below the October 21 record. Meanwhile in the Pacific Northwest, weekly rainfall totaled 10.88 inches along the coast in Quillayute, WA. Lighter amounts fell in winter wheat areas of the Northwest, improving soil moisture. We 1 (11-98) National Agricultural Summary November 9 - 15, 1998 Highlights: A strong low pressure system delivered heavy snowfall in the northern Plains and large accumulations of rain in parts of the southern Plains, Mississippi Delta, and Southeast. In the Southeast, the rain was welcomed, as some areas of the southern Piedmont had been very dry. The northern half of the storm brought lighter, more widespread rain to the Corn Belt, but also packed damaging winds. Additional late-week rains caused severe flooding in parts of eastern Texas. Another strong storm delivered heavy rain along the coast of the Pacific Northwest. Snow, up to 1 foot deep in some places, protected the winter wheat in the northern Great Plains and northern Rocky Mountains from a blast of cold arctic air. Cool, dry weather aided harvest efforts in the Southwest. Winter Wheat: Planting progressed to 93 percent complete, slightly behind the 94 percent average for this date. Wheat had emerged on 83 percent of the acreage, 2 percentage points behind the 5-year average. Cold weather and snow, heavy in some places, put an end to planting in the northern Great Plains. However, planting remained brisk in the lower Missouri Valley, Mississippi Delta, parts of the Southeast, and in California. Virtually all of the crop had emerged in the central and northern Great Plains before the winter storm pushed through. In the northern Rocky Mountains, a small percentage of the crop had not emerged prior to the winter storm. Seasonable temperatures aided emergence in the southern Corn Belt, Mississippi Delta, Southeast, and parts of the Pacific Northwest. Corn: The Nation's corn harvest advanced 4 percentage points, to 94 percent complete, and remained 1 week ahead of the normal pace. Harvest activity remained brisk in Michigan and Pennsylvania. Elsewhere around the Corn Belt, farmers were storing their combines, as the harvest season neared the end. In most States, the harvest was ending more than 1 week ahead of normal, but in Colorado and South Dakota, harvest progress was several days behind normal. Soybeans: The harvest pace continued to decline, progressing just 2 percentage points, to 96 percent complete. In most areas of the Corn Belt and Mississippi Delta, the harvest was virtually complete. The harvest pace was still very brisk in the Southeast, where progress was more than 1 week ahead of the 5-year average. Cotton: The Nation's cotton harvest progressed to 80 percent complete, up from 75 percent the previous week. Normally, 77 percent of the crop would be harvested by this date. Dry weather aided harvest in California, but progress remained far behind the normal pace. The harvest also lagged in Arizona and New Mexico, despite good progress. In the Southeast, the harvest continued at a steady pace, while growers in the Mississippi Delta were virtually finished. Other crops: Sorghum harvested advanced to 91 percent complete, slightly behind the 92 percent average. Dry weather permitted Illinois farmers to nearly finish harvesting the remainder of their crop. New Mexico farmers also made rapid progress, but remained slightly behind normal. Progress also lagged slightly in most areas of the Great Plains. Ninety-two percent of the peanuts were harvested, ahead of the normal pace of 89 percent. Growers in Oklahoma made good progress, but remained well behind the 5-year average. In the Southeast, the harvest was nearly finished, including Florida, where less than half of the peanut crop would normally be harvested by this date. Corn: Percent Harvested, Selected States 1/ -------------------------------------- : Week Ending : :-----------------------: 1993- State:Nov 15,:Nov 8, :Nov 15,: 1997 : 1998 : 1998 : 1997 : Avg. -------------------------------------- : Percent : CO : 83 78 90 89 GA : 100 100 100 100 IL : 95 92 96 94 IN : 98 93 85 87 IA : 95 92 95 94 KS : 98 97 95 97 KY : 99 97 93 95 MI : 94 83 49 69 MN : 97 96 97 93 MO : 91 87 93 90 NE : 89 86 90 90 NC : 100 100 99 99 OH : 92 85 70 77 PA : 85 70 64 71 SD : 82 78 97 89 TX : 100 100 100 100 WI : 91 86 68 78 : 17 Sts: 94 90 90 90 -------------------------------------- 1/ These 17 States harvested 92% of last year's corn acreage. Soybeans: Percent Harvested, Selected States 1/ -------------------------------------- : Week Ending : :-----------------------: 1993- State:Nov 15,:Nov 8, :Nov 15,: 1997 : 1998 : 1998 : 1997 : Avg. -------------------------------------- : Percent : AL : 87 85 71 69 AR : 95 89 80 81 GA : 70 53 42 50 IL : 97 96 99 99 IN : 100 98 99 98 IA : 99 99 99 99 KS : 90 88 95 95 KY : 97 94 76 81 LA : 100 100 99 96 MI : 100 98 93 97 MN : 99 98 99 99 MS : 99 98 90 89 MO : 92 87 90 90 NE : 96 95 97 99 NC : 45 40 31 32 OH : 99 99 100 97 SC : 55 40 19 31 SD : 96 95 100 99 TN : 95 90 64 69 : 19 Sts: 96 94 93 93 -------------------------------------- 1/ These 19 States harvested 93% of last year's soybean acreage. Winter Wheat: Percent Planted, Selected States 1/ -------------------------------------- : Week Ending : :-----------------------: 1993- State:Nov 15,:Nov 8, :Nov 15,: 1997 : 1998 : 1998 : 1997 : Avg. -------------------------------------- : Percent : AR : 90 78 76 75 CA : 40 30 36 32 CO : 100 100 100 100 GA : 22 16 18 25 ID : 99 98 99 99 IL : 98 96 100 98 IN : 99 97 100 100 KS : 98 97 99 99 MI : 100 100 100 100 MO : 86 76 95 92 MT : 100 100 100 99 NE : 100 100 100 100 NC : 70 55 69 62 OH : 100 100 100 100 OK : 96 92 98 99 OR : 97 92 97 94 SD : 100 100 100 100 TX : 92 88 94 93 WA : 100 100 100 98 : 19 Sts: 95 93 96 95 -------------------------------------- 1/ These 19 States planted 91% of last year's winter wheat acreage. Cotton: Percent Harvested, Selected States 1/ -------------------------------------- : Week Ending : :-----------------------: 1993- State:Nov 15,:Nov 8, :Nov 15,: 1997 : 1998 : 1998 : 1997 : Avg. -------------------------------------- : Percent : AL : 93 91 74 81 AZ : 71 63 81 81 AR : 97 95 87 92 CA : 45 35 94 98 GA : 76 65 59 72 LA : 99 99 99 98 MS : 100 99 95 95 MO : 93 87 85 90 NM : 43 35 68 66 NC : 90 85 61 73 OK : 80 76 58 53 SC : 89 82 63 75 TN : 98 95 83 88 TX : 75 71 70 64 : 14 Sts: 80 75 76 77 -------------------------------------- 1/ These 14 States harvested 98% of last year's cotton acreage. Winter Wheat: Percent Emerged, Selected States 1/ -------------------------------------- : Week Ending : :-----------------------: 1993- State:Nov 15,:Nov 8, :Nov 15,: 1997 : 1998 : 1998 : 1997 : Avg. -------------------------------------- : Percent : AR : 72 50 64 62 CA : 15 8 14 15 CO : 97 97 99 99 GA : 11 8 12 16 ID : 92 86 89 88 IL : 95 84 97 90 IN : 92 89 92 93 KS : 95 90 94 96 MI : 97 92 99 95 MO : 70 55 83 78 MT : 93 88 91 88 NE : 100 100 100 100 NC : 50 35 40 44 OH : 100 98 93 93 OK : 85 77 87 90 OR : 89 79 79 84 SD : 100 100 100 99 TX : 79 74 84 83 WA : 99 99 99 91 : 19 Sts: 88 83 89 89 -------------------------------------- 1/ These 19 States planted 91% of last year's winter wheat acreage. Sorghum: Percent Harvested, Selected States 1/ -------------------------------------- : Week Ending : :-----------------------: 1993- State:Nov 15,:Nov 8, :Nov 15,: 1997 : 1998 : 1998 : 1997 : Avg. -------------------------------------- : Percent : AR : 100 100 99 100 CO : 66 61 26 68 IL : 98 86 94 90 KS : 95 94 88 94 LA : 100 100 100 100 MS : 100 100 100 100 MO : 92 88 92 90 NE : 94 90 94 95 NM : 60 46 80 64 OK : 88 83 71 72 SD : 89 87 95 94 TX : 88 85 91 95 : 12 Sts: 91 88 88 92 -------------------------------------- 1/ These 12 States harvested 99% of last year's sorghum acreage. Peanuts: Percent Harvested, Selected States 1/ -------------------------------------- : Week Ending : :-----------------------: 1993- State:Nov 15,:Nov 8, :Nov 15,: 1997 : 1998 : 1998 : 1997 : Avg. -------------------------------------- : Percent : AL : 95 92 100 100 FL : 99 97 100 40 GA : 98 94 100 99 NC : 95 90 92 94 OK : 87 78 96 98 SC : 98 96 96 96 TX : 77 71 82 73 VA : 100 99 99 100 : 8 Sts : 92 88 95 89 -------------------------------------- 1/ These 8 States harvested 99% of last year's peanut acreage. Winter Wheat: Crop Condition by Percent, Selected States -------------------------------------- State : VP : P : F : G : EX -------------------------------------- : Percent : AR : 0 1 33 55 11 CA : 0 0 0 50 50 CO : 0 1 11 54 34 GA : 5 16 38 41 0 ID : 0 0 7 76 17 IL : 0 4 17 66 13 IN : 0 2 22 60 16 KS : 1 6 30 49 14 MI : 1 4 33 52 10 MO : 0 5 36 54 5 MT : 1 5 33 60 1 NE : 0 2 17 68 13 NC : 0 5 45 38 12 OH : 0 1 17 59 23 OK : 0 4 18 70 8 OR : 0 3 23 74 0 SD : 0 1 9 65 25 TX : 2 12 40 40 6 WA : 1 18 41 37 3 : 19 Sts : 1 6 26 54 13 : Prev Wk : 1 6 27 55 11 Prev Yr : 1 3 21 64 11 -------------------------------------- VP-Very Poor, P-Poor, F-Fair, G-Good, EX-Excellent. National crop conditions for selected States are weighted based on 1997 planted acres. The next "Weekly Weather & Crop Bulletin" report will be released at 12 p.m. ET on November 24, 1998. 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