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For Immediate Release: Monday, July 9, 2018
DES MOINES – Iowa
Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig today commented on the Iowa Crop Progress
and Condition report released by the USDA National Agricultural Statistical
Service. The report is released weekly from April through November.
“Much
of the state saw drier conditions last week that allowed saturated fields to
start draining and gave farmers the opportunity to do some spraying and other
work that had been delayed by the wet weather,” Naig said. “In general crops are
maturing quickly, with both corn and soybean development more than a week ahead
of the five-year average.”
The
weekly report is also available on the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land
Stewardship’s website at www.IowaAgriculture.gov or on USDA’s
site at www.nass.usda.gov/ia. The report
summary follows here:
CROP
REPORT
Warm
weather and drier conditions allowed Iowa farmers 4.8 days suitable for
fieldwork during the week ending July 8, 2018, according to the USDA, National
Agricultural Statistics Service. Activities for the week included, herbicide
and fungicide applications, detasseling seed corn and harvesting hay.
Topsoil
moisture levels rated 2 percent very short, 9 percent short, 72 percent
adequate and 17 percent surplus. Subsoil moisture levels rated 4 percent very
short, 10 percent short, 69 percent adequate and 17 percent surplus. Some
fields remain ponded and have struggled to drain in the more saturated northern
two-thirds of the State. In south central and southeast Iowa topsoil moisture
supplies remain one-third to one-half short to very short.
Thirty-five
percent of the corn crop has silked, 8 days ahead of both last year and the
5-year average. Seventy-eight percent of the corn crop was rated in good to
excellent condition. Forty-six percent of the soybean crop was blooming, over
one week ahead of the average. Seven percent of the soybean crop was setting
pods, 3 days ahead of last year and 6 days ahead of the average. Seventy-six
percent of the soybean crop was rated in good to excellent condition.
Ninety-seven percent of the oat crop has headed with 51 percent turning color,
2 days ahead of the average. Seventy-eight percent of the oat crop was rated in
good to excellent condition.
The
second cutting of alfalfa hay reached 49 percent complete, 6 days ahead of
average. Drier conditions provided producers a window to put up more hay. Hay
condition declined to 71 percent good to excellent. Pasture conditions also
declined slightly to 64 percent good to excellent. Heat and high humidity have
been hard on livestock, but cool overnight temperatures have helped reduce
stress.
IOWA PRELIMINARY
WEATHER SUMMARY
By
Dr. Justin Glisan, State Climatologist, Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land
Stewardship
The
4th of July holiday week was relatively calm compared to the previous few weeks.
Much of Iowa was able to dry out from last week’s widespread thunderstorm
activity; a majority of the state saw below normal accumulations, from a few
tenths to a little over an inch. On the other hand, Iowa’s northwest corner saw
more rainfall, generally on the order of one to two inches above normal. On
Monday (2nd) only a handful of stations from Plymouth to Kossuth Counties
recorded measurable rainfall, with Swea City observing 0.89 inches. The state
was dry heading into Independence Day, though a cold front propagated through
Iowa’s northern third during Wednesday afternoon. The full system moved through
overnight into Thursday, bringing near normal temperatures and lower humidity.
Pocahontas recorded 2.90 inches of rain from the frontal passage, which was the
week’s highest rainfall accumulation and 2.74 inches above normal. There were
also multiple reports of severe straight-line winds from Shelby County to
Winnebago County, with a 61-mph gust in Lake Mills. Thursday (5th) through
Sunday (8th) saw nearly dry and sunny conditions reigning over the state. This
pattern was attributed to a large high pressure system moving through Minnesota
into the Great Lakes region. On Friday (6th) a few counties in southeast and
northwest Iowa observed measurable rain from isolated thunderstorms; Washta, in
Cherokee County, reported 1.50 inches. Over the weekend, average highs ranged
from the low-to-mid 80s across the north and mid-to-upper 80s in the south. The
week’s high temperature was 97 degrees and was observed in De Soto on Wednesday
(4th) and Lamoni on Thursday (5th). Sheldon, in O’Brien County, reported the
week’s low temperature of 49 degrees on Saturday (7th). This reading was 10
degrees below average.
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For more information, contact Dustin Vande Hoef, (515) 281-3375 or (515) 326-1616 (cell) or Dustin.VandeHoef@IowaAgriculture.gov
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