ga-crop-weather State Georgia Crop Weather Week Ending Date August 12, 2007 Issue GA-CW0107 Agricultural Summary August 13, 2007 HEAT WAVE STRESSES CROPS The State experienced a heat wave during the week, with temperatures breaking 100 in many parts of the State, according to the USDA, NASS, Georgia Field Office. Average high temperatures were in the upper 90's and lower 100's most of the week. Lows averaged in the 70's. Average rainfall was 0.63 inches. Soil moisture conditions were rated at 27% very short, 41% short, 31% adequate, and 1% surplus. Extremely high temperatures and limited moisture stressed crops and livestock this week. Some areas of the state benefited from scattered showers, but most areas received little to no rain. Drought conditions quickly returned. The extreme heat has slowed plant growth and has caused plants to wilt. Between the dry conditions and the late plantings, row crop maturity has been behind normal this year. Corn earworms have been reported in cotton. Field preparation for fall vegetables was under way. Other activities included cutting hay, harvesting corn, feeding hay to livestock, irrigating crops, and the routine care of poultry and livestock. County Extension Agents reported an average of 6.5 days suitable for fieldwork. Crop Progress for Week Ending 08/12/07 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Crop Stage : This Week : Prev Week : Prev Year : 5 Year Avg -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Percent : Corn Dough : 96 93 100 99 Corn Dent : 87 79 94 92 Corn Mature : 57 38 75 71 Soybeans Blooming : 69 57 83 86 Soybeans Setting Pods : 41 27 56 62 Sorghum Harvested : 0 NA 11 6 Cotton Setting Bolls : 87 72 98 96 Cotton Bolls Opening : 1 0 6 6 Apples Harvested : 6 4 13 11 Peaches Harvested : 97 93 95 97 Peanuts Pegging : 94 89 100 99 Tobacco Harvested : 50 41 65 68 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Crop Condition for Week Ending 08/12/07 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Crop :Very Poor : Poor : Fair : Good :Excellent -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Percent : Corn : 16 19 27 32 6 Soybeans : 3 10 42 40 5 Sorghum : 9 10 43 36 2 Cotton : 5 10 36 40 9 Range and Pasture : 16 26 36 21 1 Apples : 37 21 35 7 0 Hay : 18 23 33 24 2 Peanuts : 4 9 37 41 9 Pecans : 9 13 33 36 9 Tobacco : 1 9 28 49 13 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Topsoil Moisture for Week Ending 08/12/07 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : This Week :Previous Week : 5 Year Avg -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Percent : Very Short : 27 11 12 Short : 41 43 26 Adequate : 31 44 47 Surplus : 1 2 15 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Topsoil Moisture for Week Ending 08/12/07, by District -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- District : Very Short : Short : Adequate : Surplus -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Percent : District 1 (NW) : 56 44 0 0 District 2 (NC) : 25 46 29 0 District 3 (NE) : 42 30 28 0 District 4 (WC) : 49 40 11 0 District 5 (C) : 26 51 23 0 District 6 (EC) : 25 53 22 0 District 7 (SW) : 41 32 27 0 District 8 (SC) : 8 37 53 2 District 9 (SE) : 1 23 74 2 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- * A list of the counties in each of the nine Georgia Agricultural Statistics Districts is available at http://www.nass.usda.gov/ga/ctyests/districts.pdf. Pasture Condition for Week Ending 08/12/07, by District -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- District : Very Poor : Poor : Fair : Good : Excellent -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Percent : District 1 (NW) : 37 29 27 7 0 District 2 (NC) : 7 24 29 39 1 District 3 (NE) : 36 33 31 0 0 District 4 (WC) : 24 48 20 8 0 District 5 (C) : 18 29 41 11 1 District 6 (EC) : 6 31 52 11 0 District 7 (SW) : 29 22 35 11 3 District 8 (SC) : 2 19 39 38 2 District 9 (SE) : 0 2 34 59 5 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- * A list of the counties in each of the nine Georgia Agricultural Statistics Districts is available at http://www.nass.usda.gov/ga/ctyests/districts.pdf. Weather Summary for Week Ending 08/12/07, by Station Location ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Temperature : Precipitation : Location :-----------------:---------------------------------------:Soil : Max : Min : Avg :Weekly : Days :30 Day :60 Day : Season :Temp ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Albany : 102 76 86 1.71 4 3.99 6.45 23.34 93 Alma : 100 72 84 1.88 2 8.43 12.30 22.43 85 Alpharetta : 100 70 84 0.00 0 2.07 5.38 18.99 83 Arlington : 100 74 84 2.29 5 4.75 9.31 24.10 85 Attapulgus : 99 73 83 0.90 4 4.03 6.61 15.01 87 Blairsville : 95 62 78 0.00 0 4.45 10.49 24.05 80 Williamson : 101 70 85 0.01 1 3.40 7.36 21.37 88 Bowen : 101 71 83 1.30 4 2.79 4.52 16.94 93 Brunswick : 99 72 86 0.57 2 7.40 10.52 22.58 85 Byromville : 104 74 86 0.41 1 3.08 5.90 20.11 88 Byron : 103 72 86 1.70 2 2.52 7.61 21.18 86 Cairo : 99 74 84 0.34 2 5.19 7.79 20.41 84 Calhoun : 102 65 84 0.00 0 2.71 6.35 15.01 84 Pine Mountain : 102 70 84 0.37 2 1.51 6.03 24.26 84 Camilla : 101 75 85 1.94 3 4.79 10.02 22.58 90 Clarks Hill : 105 70 86 0.13 1 1.31 3.97 17.70 88 Cordele : 103 73 85 0.90 1 4.74 8.48 21.92 87 Covington : 103 73 86 0.00 0 3.15 6.86 20.58 89 Dahlonega : 97 65 81 0.00 0 1.82 5.36 21.29 83 Dallas : 101 69 84 0.00 0 3.64 7.10 19.29 86 Dawson : 104 74 85 0.92 2 1.51 3.31 15.59 86 Dearing : 105 73 88 0.00 0 1.09 3.60 17.72 86 Dempsey : 102 72 86 0.00 0 1.75 4.15 15.89 91 Dixie : 98 73 84 1.25 3 11.32 17.40 29.47 90 Dublin : 105 72 86 0.22 2 1.26 5.20 26.87 87 Duluth : 101 70 84 0.00 0 3.65 7.02 21.93 84 Dunwoody : 99 70 84 0.00 0 5.47 9.87 23.10 83 Eatonton : 104 70 85 0.03 1 4.21 7.55 20.74 90 Elberton : 106 71 87 0.03 1 0.64 2.94 20.31 87 Ellijay : 96 63 79 0.00 0 3.02 5.37 16.51 85 Rome : 102 67 84 0.00 0 1.83 7.22 14.82 84 Fort Valley : 104 74 86 0.17 2 1.74 5.09 16.48 90 Gainesville : 100 73 85 0.00 0 2.51 6.24 18.03 89 Georgetown : 102 73 85 2.73 1 6.39 11.27 28.75 89 Griffin : 101 73 86 0.00 0 2.82 6.17 18.73 85 Homerville : 100 71 84 2.10 3 8.75 13.15 25.12 86 Jonesboro : 103 73 86 0.04 1 1.90 4.02 17.29 89 Jeffersonville : 104 73 86 0.00 0 1.82 5.26 22.46 89 Lafayette : 99 66 84 0.00 0 3.50 5.28 16.67 83 McRae : 104 72 84 0.88 2 2.73 5.08 21.52 89 Midville : 105 72 87 0.00 0 1.51 3.82 21.66 90 Newton : 101 73 85 1.67 5 3.18 5.37 19.13 89 Plains : 104 72 85 0.09 1 1.61 7.53 20.60 90 Sasser : 100 73 83 1.46 5 3.01 7.09 23.78 85 Savannah : 100 72 84 2.10 3 6.28 10.43 23.86 88 Skidaway : 98 73 84 0.02 2 9.39 13.41 26.24 85 Sneads : 98 75 84 0.00 0 0.33 2.62 10.03 88 Statesboro : 101 72 85 0.57 2 4.32 7.39 25.83 91 Tifton : 99 74 83 1.21 4 3.59 6.49 18.73 85 Tiger : 95 63 77 0.98 1 4.68 11.88 32.84 84 Valdosta : 99 74 85 0.42 3 5.59 9.59 24.21 84 Vidalia : 101 73 85 0.48 2 5.94 10.08 27.71 87 Roopville : 102 70 85 0.00 0 2.41 8.76 20.69 88 Watkinsville : 105 71 87 0.00 0 1.44 3.89 17.65 88 Woodbine : 101 72 85 0.56 4 9.13 10.54 27.04 87 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- *Weather data are supplied by the Georgia Automated Environmental Monitoring Network (AEMN) and the office of the State Climatologist, University of Georgia. For detailed Georgia weather data, visit the AEMN homepage at www.georgiaweather.net. DISTRICT COMMENTS August 12, 2007 DISTRICT 1 - NORTHWEST Hot and dry week. DISTRICT 2 - NORTH CENTRAL A good bit of hay was cut last week, but the hot temperatures are sapping moisture supplies from the ground, drying up pastures. Extremely high temperatures and no rain this week - late planted corn beginning to tassel and in need of rain. DISTRICT 3 - NORTHEAST Hay production is improving due to lack of rain, but overall area is beginning to dry out again. Rainfall is needed. Heat is beginning to take its toll on livestock. DISTRICT 4 - WEST CENTRAL Crop conditions continue to deteriorate with 100 degree + days and very little rainfall. Some parts of the county have received 1.5 inches in small pockets, while the rest of the county has received little or no rainfall at all. Ponds and streams levels continue to fall; some irrigation units are now without a source of water. Backing up fast; about two weeks of 'better' conditions did allow a fair to weak cutting on much Bermuda grass, and improved pasture conditions on a scattered basis but the temperatures and lack of rain of last week brought that to an end. DISTRICT 5 - CENTRAL No rain! Record high temperatures! Over 100 degrees most days this week. Pasture and hayfield conditions as well as crop conditions declining rapidly. Also pond and stream levels dropping. Some producers still having to feed hay to livestock. A few scattered showers have helped crop conditions in isolated areas. The recent rash of 100 degree plus days are causing major problems. We have benefited from the occasional evening shower, but things are getting very hot and dry. Continues to be hot and dry. Corn harvest has begun. Haying continues. Extreme heat slowing plant growth. Extreme heat taking toll on livestock and farmers. Rains have been sorely lacking lately. Drought conditions are back upon us. Farmers are cutting fields of hay, many for the first time. Several farmers of feeding hay as pastures give out due to drought and extreme heat. DISTRICT 6 - EAST CENTRAL Corn finishing, growers letting it dry in fields. Peanut 3 cornered alfalfa and potato leafhoppers building up populations. Still getting CEW pressure in Bt cotton. Heat causing soybean growth to stall. Dry conditions have made cotton cut out in some places and we're completing second hay cutting along with a cutting of Sudan grass but this will be it unless we get some heat and moisture relief. Hot/dry. DISTRICT 7 - SOUTHWEST Until now, we have only had a pocket in the north part of the county that has not received afternoon rains. Now, we have been having very high daytime temperatures and plants are wilting in most areas of the county. We received 0.97" of rainfall. Hay shortage remains. Field preparation for fall vegetable plantings. Need rain! DISTRICT 8 - SOUTH CENTRAL Hot and dry. Cutting hay between afternoon showers and getting chickens houses ready for next flock. Worms showing up in crops. Harvesting corn. Cropping tobacco. Tobacco crop and quality in general looks great. No soybean rust reported. Cotton crop is blooming and doing well. Need rainfall to fill up ponds and streams. Dog Days hot! Need to keep getting frequent rains. Crops looking better and setting a fair crop considering the struggles so far. High temperatures are stressing crops and livestock. Row crop maturity is behind normal for this time of year. Hot temperatures and dry conditions have been helped by scattered showers in some areas. The areas that have not received rain are very stressed. DISTRICT 9 - SOUTHEAST No comments available.