We 1 (1-10) Weekly Weather and Crop Bulletin Washington, D.C. Released January 20, 2010, by the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), Agricultural Statistics Board, U.S. Department of Agriculture. For information on "Weekly Weather and Crop Bulletin" call Julie Schmidt at (202) 720-7621, office hours 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. ET. National Weather Summary January 10 - 16, 2010 Highlights: Unusually chilly conditions persisted though mid-week across the South, including Florida. In fact, January 11 featured the coldest weather in parts of Florida in more than 20 years, since December 1989. In the wake of Florida's long-lived cold snap, which persisted from January 2-13, producers rushed frozen oranges into production and assessed damage to commodities such vegetables, sugarcane, strawberries, tropical fish, ornamentals, and other nursery crops. In contrast, mild air expanded across the Plains and the Midwest. Aside from the persistent and severe Southeastern cold outbreak, relatively quiet weather prevailed for much of the week. Toward week's end, however, stormy weather developed across the South. Late-week Southern rainfall maintained unfavorably wet conditions and halted attempts to complete cotton and soybean harvesting. Farther north and west, mild weather melted winter wheat's protective snow cover across the High Plains and the lower Midwest. Snow depths remained greater than a foot, however, in parts of the western Corn Belt. Meanwhile on the southern High Plains, the condition of winter wheat continued to gradually decline due to the effects of the recent cold snap and ongoing dryness. Elsewhere, late-week storminess provided much needed moisture for Western watersheds. Early January reservoir storage was well below normal in Nevada, California, New Mexico, Oregon, and Utah. When stormy weather arrived in mid-January, snow packs were below average in all but a few Southwestern river basins. The average water content of the Sierra Nevada snow pack stood at 9 inches (73 percent of normal) on January 10, but improved to 13 inches (91 percent) just 8 days later. Early in the week, very cold weather persisted in the Southeast. In Florida, Gainesville opened the week with three consecutive daily-record lows (19, 17, and 22 degrees Fahrenheit) from January 10-12. Gainesville's low of 17 degrees Fahrenheit on January 11 represented its lowest reading since December 24, 1989, when it was 16 degrees Fahrenheit. A multitude of Florida stations, including Lakeland (25 and 23 degrees Fahrenheit), Melbourne (26 and 25 degrees Fahrenheit), and Miami (35 and 36 degrees Fahrenheit), set consecutive daily-record lows on January 10-11. Key West, Florida (42 degrees Fahrenheit on January 11), came within 1 degree of its lowest reading on record (41 degrees Fahrenheit on January 12, 1886, and January 13, 1981). Chilly conditions also lingered elsewhere in the South, resulting in daily-record lows for January 10 in locations such as Waco, Texas (11 degrees Fahrenheit), and Germantown, Tennessee (8 degrees Fahrenheit), near Memphis. Gainesville also set a record with 13 consecutive freezes (readings of 32 degrees Fahrenheit or below) from January 2-14, demolishing a standard established from December 16-24, 1960. Elsewhere in Florida, Tallahassee noted 14 consecutive freezes (January 2-15), breaking a record originally set from January 27-February 8, 1966. Charleston, South Carolina, dipped to 30 degrees Fahrenheit or below on 13 days in a row from January 2-14, edging a 12-day streak that occurred from January 24-February 4, 1940. In Alabama, Birmingham also topped a 1940 record with 13 consecutive days (January 2-14) with readings of 25 degrees Fahrenheit or below. In addition, Birmingham experienced its coldest January 1-15 period on record, with an average temperature of 29.7 degrees Fahrenheit, or 12.7 degrees Fahrenheit below normal (previously, 32.0 degrees Fahrenheit in 1918). Elsewhere in Alabama, it was also the coldest first half of January in Montgomery (32.4 degrees Fahrenheit, or 13.9 degrees Fahrenheit below normal; previously, 34.2 degrees Fahrenheit in 1970). Farther north, the temperature failed to rise above 32 degrees Fahrenheit in London, Kentucky, from January 2-12, tying the record set from December 16-26, 1989. In contrast, several daily-record highs were established in the West. In western Washington, Quillayute opened the week with consecutive daily-record highs (57 and 55 degrees Fahrenheit) on January 10-11. Other Northwestern records for January 11 included 72 degrees Fahrenheit in Paso Robles, California, and 67 degrees Fahrenheit in Medford, Oregon. Montague, California, ended the week with consecutive daily-record highs (58 and 55 degrees Fahrenheit) on January 15-16. Toward week's end, record warmth began to overspread the north-central U.S., where International Falls, Minnesota, notched a daily-record high (39 degrees Fahrenheit) on January 15. In the Northwest, occasional heavy precipitation accompanied the warmth. For example, Quillayute received daily-record totals on January 11, 14, 15 (4.59, 3.41, and 2.27 inches, respectively), boosting its month-to-date sum to 19.26 inches. In northern California, Mt. Shasta City netted a daily-record sum of 2.62 inches on January 12. During the second half of the week, wet weather returned to the South. On January 14-15, San Antonio, Texas, collected consecutive daily-record totals (1.49 and 1.81 inches, respectively). Later, record-setting totals for January 16 included 1.78 inches in Lake Charles, Louisiana, and 1.71 inches in Tupelo, Mississippi. Columbus, Georgia, having recently completed its wettest year on record (80.20 inches), tallied a daily-record total (1.26 inches) for January 16. Atypically dry conditions persisted in Hawaii. From January 1-16, rainfall well under 10 percent of normal at the State's major observation sites, including Honolulu (0.08 inch), Lihue (0.11 inch), Kahului (0.16 inch), and Hilo (0.28 inch). In addition, Kahului (53 degrees Fahrenheit) posted a daily-record low for January 15. Farther north, cold weather engulfed interior Alaska, where weekly temperatures averaged as much as 15 degrees Fahrenheit below normal and readings dipped below -40 degrees Fahrenheit in some locations. Meanwhile, heavy precipitation affected southern Alaska, where Annette Island (3.36 inches on January 10) experienced its wettest January day since 1988. Three days later, Valdez (15.6 inches) received a daily-record snowfall. National Weather Summary provided by USDA's World Agricultural Outlook Board. For more information, call (202) 720-2397. Agricultural Summary January 11 - 17, 2010 Highlights: With the exception of the Southeast, Delta, and the southern half of Texas, above average temperatures blanketed much of the country during the week, melting the protective snow cover on winter wheat in portions of the Midwest. Temperatures in areas of the northern Rocky Mountains and Great Plains pushed the mercury to as many as 15 degrees above normal, while recordings along much of the Gulf Coast and in Florida fell to 10 degrees below normal. An abundance of rain fell across southern Texas, with total accumulations reaching 800 percent or more above normal. Locations along the Pacific Coast and throughout the Southeast also received above average precipitation. Conversely, much of the Rocky Mountains, Great Plains, and Corn Belt were abnormally dry. Cotton and soybean producers took advantage of frozen fields in areas of Florida's Panhandle and completed some harvesting during the week. Significant losses were evident in the sugarcane crop following the previous week's freezing temperatures. Vegetable growers continued to make damage assessments, with growers in south Florida reporting losses to beans, squash, and tomatoes. Strawberry production was reduced due to many freeze damaged fields. Citrus producers increased harvesting to gather as much fruit as possible for processing. All packinghouses were open. Varieties being packed included white and colored grapefruit, early oranges, and tangerines. Cold temperatures in Georgia slowed growth in established wheat fields and held seed germination and emergence to 3 weeks or more behind in areas of the State. Following a slow start, fieldwork gained speed toward week's end allowing producers time to harvest the last of their soybean crop. Cotton growers in the East Central part of the State ran pickers late into the night, making good progress on their remaining acreage; however, approximately 94 percent of the fields in the area remained unharvested. In Texas, extremely cold temperatures caused leaf burn in the winter wheat crop in the Northern High Plains, while armyworms invaded wheat fields in the Blacklands. Most small grains in the western part of the State were dormant. Tomatoes in South Texas were also damaged by freezing temperatures. Statewide, cotton harvest was nearly complete. Pecan harvest in the Trans-Pecos was mostly complete, but producers were concerned about crop quality. Temperatures in Arizona were mostly above average, and precipitation was scarce. Cotton harvest for the 2009 crop season was complete. Fruits and vegetables being shipped included broccoli, cauliflower, Chinese cabbage, citrus, honeydews, lettuce varieties, parsley, and spinach. Although recent rainfall in California left fields in some areas too wet for machinery, the moisture boosted winter growth in many dryland small grain crops. Sugarbeets showed signs of regrowth following frosts earlier in the season. Fruit harvest continued in the Central Valley, with growers picking grapefruit, navel oranges, tangerines, and a variety of specialty citrus crops. Herbicide applications were made at a rapid pace in anticipation of heavy rainfall expected during the coming week. In addition to planting preparation and harvest, vegetable growers were busy fumigating melons, onions, sweet potatoes, and tomatoes. ACCESS TO REPORTS!! For your convenience, there are several ways to obtain NASS reports, data products, and services: INTERNET ACCESS All NASS reports are available free of charge. 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