We 1 (3-07) Weekly Weather And Crop Bulletin National Agricultural Statistics Service USDA Washington, D.C. Released March 27, 2007, by the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), Agricultural Statistics Board, U.S. Department of Agriculture. For information on "Weekly Weather and Crop Bulletin" call Theresa Holland at (202) 720-7621, office hours 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. ET. National Weather Summary Volume 94, No. 13 March 18 - 24, 2007 For additional information, call (202) 720-2397. Highlights: For the second consecutive week, above-normal temperatures prevailed nearly nationwide. Weekly readings averaged more than 15 degrees F above normal across parts of the nation's mid-section, including the central Plains. Colder-than-normal weather was confined to the Northeast, where a few locations noted temperatures at least 5 degrees F below normal. Western warmth promoted rapid crop development, but continued to prematurely melt high-elevation snow packs. Early melting could leave much of the West vulnerable to an array of late-summer problems, such as low stream flows, reduced irrigation supplies, and a potentially longer-than-average wildfire season. Despite the warmth, parts of the West received a brief shot of beneficial precipitation, with some heavier amounts noted in the Southwest and Pacific Northwest. Southwestern moisture boosted topsoil moisture reserves but failed to significantly improve long-term water supply prospects, while Northwestern showers aided pastures and winter grains. Farther east, widespread rain soaked the central and southern Plains, maintaining generally favorable conditions for vegetative winter wheat. However, strong thunderstorms caused local wind damage and spawned several tornadoes from March 23-25. Meanwhile, rain also fell from the middle Mississippi Valley into the eastern Corn Belt, perpetuating lowland flooding and causing additional delays in pre-planting fieldwork. In sharp contrast, warm, dry weather prevailed across the South, where spring planting and other fieldwork advanced with few delays. However, worsening Southeastern drought also boosted irrigation demands and increased stress on pastures and emerging, rain-fed summer crops. Record-setting warmth continued early in the week across the West, then briefly subsided. In southern California, March 18 featured a daily-record high for the seventh consecutive day in Bishop (82 degrees F) and sixth consecutive day in Needles (93 degrees F). Two days later, Rapid City, SD (83 degrees F on March 20), eclipsed its monthly standard of 82 degrees F, set most recently on March 12, 2007. Toward week's end, warmth spread into the South and returned to the West. Daily-record highs for March 24 included 86 degrees F in Raleigh-Durham, NC; 82 degrees F in Modesto, CA; and 76 degrees F in Havre, MT. On March 25, the national month-to-date tally of daily-record highs surpassed 1,000, representing the highest March number since 2004. Showers and thunderstorms developed from the central Plains into the Northeast on March 20, when Wichita, KS (2.21 inches), netted a daily-record rainfall. The following day, additional daily-record totals included 1.07 inches in Chicago, IL, and 0.97 inch in Muskegon, MI. Elsewhere in Michigan, Flint (1.05 inches on March 22) also collected a daily-record sum. Meanwhile in Florida, significant shower activity was confined to the southeastern coastal region, where Miami (0.86 inch) measured a record total for March 22. Late in the week, precipitation intensified in a broad area from the Southwest into the Midwest and Northeast. Elsewhere, severe thunderstorms erupted on the High Plains, while heavy precipitation spread into the Pacific Northwest. On March 23, daily-record totals in Ohio included 1.95 inches in Columbus and 1.86 inches in Dayton. Records in the Southwest for March 23 reached 0.85 inch in Roswell, NM, and 0.61 inch in Douglas, AZ. Elsewhere in Arizona, Phoenix received 0.83 inch on March 22-23, accounting for 36 percent of its October 1 - March 24 rainfall and 10 percent of its normal annual total. Meanwhile in the Northwest, Quillayute, WA, closed the week with consecutive daily-record totals (3.52 and 2.78 inches) on March 23 and 24. At week's end, precipitation also spread across the Rockies and Plains, resulting in daily-record totals on March 24 in locations such as McCook, NE (1.01 inches), Lubbock, TX (0.93 inch), and Alamosa, CO (0.88 inch, including 4.7 inches of snow). Through March 25, Lubbock's month-to-date precipitation climbed to 4.98 inches (859 percent of normal), shattering its March 1941 standard of 3.56 inches. More than a dozen tornadoes were spotted across eastern New Mexico and western Texas on March 23, followed by several tornado sightings in northeastern Colorado the following day. Some of the most destructive storms struck in New Mexico at Logan (Quay County) and near Clovis (Curry County). Farther east, however, March 1-24 rainfall totaled less than one-half inch and was less than 10 percent of normal in Mississippi locations such as Vicksburg (0.46 inch), Greenville (0.31 inch), and Greenwood (0.16 inch). Extremely low month-to-date totals were also noted in Florida locations such as Ft. Myers (0.13 inch, or 6 percent of normal) and West Palm Beach (0.31 inch, or 11 percent). Cold, dry weather lingered for most of the week across the Alaskan mainland, where temperatures averaged as much as 15 degrees F below normal. From February 16 - March 20, Fairbanks noted 33 consecutive days with below-normal daily average temperatures. Fairbanks also reported a minimum of -10 degrees F or lower on each of those 33 days. Elsewhere, Alaskan daily-record lows for March 24 included -30 degrees F in McGrath and -27 degrees F in King Salmon. Meanwhile, heavy snow continued in southeastern Alaska, where Juneau set records for both March and seasonal snowfall. Through March 24, Juneau's totals climbed to 60.6 and 195.7 inches, respectively. Previous records were 52.6 inches in March 1948 and 194.3 inches from July 1, 1964 - June 30, 1965. Farther south, Hawaii experienced a warm week with scattered, generally light showers. Weekly rainfall totaled 1.74 inches in Hilo, on the Big Island, but the March 1-24 sum stood at just 3.69 inches (34 percent of normal). Mainly due to earlier showers, month-to-date rainfall reached 5.67 inches (202 percent of normal) in Lihue, Kauai. National Agricultural Summary March 19 - 25, 2007 Highlights: Temperatures averaged above normal once again this week over most of the Nation, except in Florida and the Northeast where averages were near to slightly below normal. Record-setting temperatures in many areas across the western two-thirds of the country resulted in weekly averages 10 to 15 degrees F above normal from the Great Plains through the Corn Belt, and up to 20 degrees F above normal over portions of Kansas and Oklahoma. Significant precipitation continued in the Pacific Northwest, while further east storms yielded 1 to 4 inch accumulations from eastern New Mexico northeastward into the Corn Belt, the Ohio Valley, and the Great Lakes region. The record warmth was generally favorable for spring fieldwork and promoted rapid development of winter wheat, which also benefitted from the rains across northern Texas, Oklahoma and Kansas. Lowland flooding and soggy soils from the eastern Dakotas into Indiana continued to hamper farmers efforts to prepare fields for planting. In much of the Southeast, warm, dry weather allowed spring planting to advance well-ahead of schedule, but unfavorably dry conditions increased stress on emerging crops and pastures. In California, warm weather promoted rapid growth of small grains and vegetable crops, and caused grape vines to leaf out earlier than normal. In the central and southern Great Plains, winter wheat was in mostly good condition as crop development continued to progress well-ahead of schedule in Kansas and Oklahoma due to warmer than normal weather. In Texas, field preparations and planting of corn, cotton, soybeans, sorghum, rice, and a variety of vegetables continued. Supplemental feeding of livestock declined considerably as forage growth increased. In Florida, warm, dry weather allowed planting and harvesting of vegetables to proceed on schedule. However, extremely dry conditions persisted across most of the State, impacting development of field crops and vegetables. ACCESS TO REPORTS!! 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