Weather - General
Farmers across the Texas High Plains received a deluge of rainfall right at planting, and while the moisture was needed, the sudden switch prevented some farmers from planting their intended cotton acres this year.
Hurricane-force winds swept from northern Missouri and Iowa all the way east to Illinois and Indiana. The derecho brought wind gusts up to 100 mph, flattening cornfields, but it also drenched soils with crucial rains.
Even with rains sweeping the Northern Corn Belt last weekend, the latest drought monitor shows drought continues to spread across Illinois with D2 (Severe Drought) taking a 28-point jump in a week.
Despite weekend rains sweeping the northern Corn Belt, corn and soybean conditions sit at the second-lowest level in history. Sizable declines hit key areas of the Corn Belt as corn enters a critical time for production.
Corn prices sunk as forecasts turned more optimistic for the weekend rains in the northern Corn Belt. USDA meteorologist Brad Rippey says the rains aren’t enough to change the potential production problems in Illinois.
Drought is deepening across the Midwest with 64% of the corn crop and 57% of the soybean crop across the U.S. now covered in drought, a sizable jump in just a week after NASS showed a historic drop in condition ratings.
Arkansas farmer Clay Smith had a close encounter with lightning this week — and it was all caught on camera. He describes the experience as well as the damage it caused.
High water levels and flooding are starting to ease on the upper Mississippi River which is allowing locks to reopen and barge traffic to resume.
“We have a pretty deep trough of low-pressure that’s kind of parked over the Midwest, which is leading to below-normal temperatures,” says Brad Rippey, USDA meteorologist. Here’s a look at the 30-day forecast.
USDA’s weekly Crop Progress Report shows 14% of the nation’s corn crop and 9% of the soybean crop is planted. Farmers in Missouri and Tennessee are planting at a rapid pace, but the upper Midwest is already behind.