fl-crop-weather State Florida Crop Weather Week Ending/Released Dates Week ending June 19, 2005 Released 4:00 P.M. June 20, 2005 Report Code FL-CW2505 Weather Summary Report Daily showers dropped from one to six inches of rain across the central inland Peninsula, northern Peninsula and southeastern coast during the week of June 13 through 19. The southwestern Peninsula remained mostly dry while spotty showers missed many areas of the Panhandle during the week. Rainfall totaled from traces in Balm to about six inches in Orlando. Most precipitation totaled one to three inches in the rainy areas while drier parts got from traces to about a half inch. Temperatures for the week averaged normal to three degrees above in the major cities. Daytime highs were in the 80s and 90s while nighttime lows were mostly in the 70s. Field Crops Report Some hay growers are behind schedule due to frequent rains hampering hay cutting, curing and baling. Saturated fields in some Panhandle locations slowed the timely applications of pesticides to peanuts with drier weather in some localities this past week allowing treatments. Producers report that recent cool nights slowed the maturity and development of peanuts. Peanut condition is rated 1 percent very poor, 1 percent poor, 25 percent fair, 50 percent good and 23 percent excellent versus last week's revised condition of 2 percent poor, 30 percent fair, 48 percent good and 20 percent excellent. Cotton and soybeans in Jackson County are in good condition. The scattered rains elevated soil moisture supplies in most areas while continued dry weather lowered supplies in others. Soil moisture supplies in the Panhandle are mostly adequate with a few surplus pockets. Some localities in the northern and central Peninsula, as well as the Big Bend area report soil moisture supplies mostly adequate to surplus. In Suwannee, Jefferson and Wakulla counties, soil moisture is short to mostly adequate. Areas along the southeastern coast reported mostly surplus soil moisture supplies with Broward County reporting very short to short supplies. Percentage of Peanuts Pegged to Date This year 14 Last year 42 Five year average 37 Soil Moisture Chart Topsoil Subsoil Moisture Rating This Last Last This Last Last week week year week week Year Percent Very short 1 1 4 0 0 4 Short 3 1 26 1 1 29 Adequate 53 53 61 58 58 62 Surplus 43 45 9 41 41 5 Vegetable Report Quincy area producers report no significant damage to tomatoes from Tropical Storm Arlene's wind and rain with picking proceeding mostly on schedule. A lack of labor available for harvest-ing and packing concerned some tomato growers. In Wakulla County, excess moisture and heat caused tomatoes to crack and blister. In Sumter County, watermelon picking is active as pepper and squash harvesting wind down. Most northern growers report that cool temperatures during May hindered watermelon fruit and vine growth with picking running one to two weeks behind normal and some fruit now getting sunburned. Watermelon producers now have virtually all outbreaks of gummy stem blight under control. Cantaloupe harvesting is nearing the end. Potato digging is almost finished around Hastings and northern areas due to hot temperatures causing a reduction in quality. Other vegetables available include light amounts of cucumbers, okra and peppers. Livestock Report In the Panhandle, the pasture is in good shape and most cattle are in good to excellent condition. In the northern areas, cattle and pasture are mostly in good condition. However, excessive rain saturated the ground and flooded out low-lying pastures. In the southwest, most pasture is in good condition. However, some of the pasture is saturated from recent rains and Tropical Storm Arlene. Most cattle in the area are in poor to good condition. Statewide, cattle are in good condition. Livestock Condition Chart Range Cattle Condition This Last This Last week week week week Percent Very poor 0 0 0 0 Poor 0 0 5 5 Fair 10 20 15 15 Good 80 75 75 70 Excellent 10 5 5 10 Fruit Report Citrus: Hot, humid, and rainy weather occurred over the citrus growing areas this week in a return to more normal summer weather patterns. Temperatures soared to some of the highest of the summer as humidity levels also reached high levels. These conditions brought on intense thunderstorms that produced lightning and heavy local rainfall amounts. Totals recorded were only up to one inch in coastal and interior areas. Field work in groves was interrupted in local areas as harvest on a statewide basis returned to more normal levels for this time of year. Processors are trying to finish the last of the Valencia oranges and close for the season. Harvest is complete for all other types . Estimated boxes harvested week ended Crop Jun 05 Jun 12 Jun 19 In thousands of 1-3/5 bushel boxes Valencia oranges 1,489 2,399 2,573 Grapefruit 14 0 2 Comments/Contact Information To receive this report via e-mail, log onto http://www.usda.gov/nass/sso-rpts.htm Then click on “Subscribe” (upper right part of screen), then select “Florida Crop-Weather”, enter your name and your e-mail address, then click on “Subscribe”. The report will be sent automatically to your e-mail address each week.