ga-crop-weather State Georgia Crop Weather Week Ending Date April 12, 2009 Issue GA-CW1509 Agricultural Summary April 13, 2009 EARLY WEEK FREEZE Georgia experienced sunny and cool temperatures throughout the week and thunder storms on Friday, according to the USDA, NASS, Georgia Field Office. Daily average high temperatures fluctuated between the high 60's and mid- 70's, except for Tuesday where the average high was 50. Average lows ranged from the low 30's to the low 50's most of the week. Soil moisture conditions were rated at 0% very short, 1% short, 49% adequate, and 50% surplus. Freezing temperatures, early in the week, damaged to some grape, strawberry and blueberry crops. Heavy frost caused damage to corn in some areas. The earthquake that hit northwestern Hancock measured 2.2 in magnitude and was felt in many parts of the county. Several pastures remain flooded from the previous week's rain. In some areas corn was stunted and yellow due to saturated soils. Some corn, planted in heavy soils and low spots, had reduced stands due to low germination and seed rotting. Wet soils delayed planting of tobacco and replanting of corn. Some farmers worked on equipment, and fixed ditches and roadways around farm that were damaged by the storms. Other activities included pasture weed control, and routine care of livestock and poultry. Overall, crops seem to be in good condition. County Extension Agents reported an average of 3.0 days suitable for fieldwork. Crop Progress for Week Ending 04/12/09 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Crop Stage : This Week : Prev Week : Prev Year : 5 Year Avg -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Percent : Corn Planted : 64 57 68 70 Corn Emerged : 48 39 46 53 Sorghum Planted : 2 2 14 6 Winter Wheat Jointing : 94 88 92 92 Winter Wheat Boot : 69 52 68 66 Winter Wheat Headed : 28 15 28 37 Apples Blooming : 15 7 22 38 Onions Harvested : 3 0 2 4 Tobacco Transplanted : 15 11 26 15 Watermelons Planted : 54 51 68 59 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Crop Condition for Week Ending 04/12/09 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Crop :Very Poor : Poor : Fair : Good :Excellent -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Percent : Corn : 6 19 41 31 3 Winter Wheat : 1 4 32 55 8 Range and Pasture : 2 8 37 48 5 Hay : 3 7 52 35 3 Onions : 0 0 23 76 1 Peaches : 0 13 29 58 0 Watermelons : 1 20 51 28 0 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Topsoil Moisture for Week Ending 04/12/09 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : This Week :Previous Week : 5 Year Avg -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Percent : Very Short : 0 0 0 Short : 1 1 0 Adequate : 49 31 0 Surplus : 50 68 0 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Topsoil Moisture for Week Ending 04/12/09, by District -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- District : Very Short : Short : Adequate : Surplus -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Percent : District 1 (NW) : 0 7 87 6 District 2 (NC) : 0 2 49 49 District 3 (NE) : 0 2 73 25 District 4 (WC) : 0 0 50 50 District 5 (C) : 0 0 42 58 District 6 (EC) : 0 0 74 26 District 7 (SW) : 0 0 35 65 District 8 (SC) : 0 0 28 72 District 9 (SE) : 0 1 46 53 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- * A list of the counties in each of the nine Georgia Agricultural Statistics Districts is available at http://www.nass.usda.gov/Statistics_by_State/Georgia/Publications/County_Esti mates/index.asp. Pasture Condition for Week Ending 04/12/09, by District -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- District : Very Poor : Poor : Fair : Good : Excellent -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Percent : District 1 (NW) : 0 3 30 67 0 District 2 (NC) : 0 2 24 59 15 District 3 (NE) : 0 2 35 60 3 District 4 (WC) : 1 8 45 43 3 District 5 (C) : 9 13 20 49 9 District 6 (EC) : 0 15 30 55 0 District 7 (SW) : 3 8 53 29 7 District 8 (SC) : 5 12 44 37 2 District 9 (SE) : 0 10 48 41 1 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- * A list of the counties in each of the nine Georgia Agricultural Statistics Districts is available at http://www.nass.usda.gov/Statistics_by_State/Georgia/Publications/County_Esti mates/index.asp. Weather Summary for Week Ending 04/12/09, by Station Location ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Temperature : Precipitation : Location :-----------------:-------------------------------------:Soil : Max : Min : Avg :Weekly : Days :30 Day :60 Day:Season :Temp ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Alapaha : 72 46 59 0.00 0 13.54 16.95 18.10 64 Albany : 73 49 61 0.06 1 14.47 16.26 17.45 68 Alma : 72 48 60 0.01 1 13.02 15.06 16.79 62 Alpharetta : 66 39 53 0.73 1 7.20 11.68 16.71 55 Arabi : 71 47 59 0.46 2 11.69 13.49 14.88 63 Arlington : 72 47 59 0.00 0 12.87 17.06 18.97 64 Atlanta : 65 44 54 0.65 2 5.95 9.19 11.51 NA Attapulgus : 73 46 59 0.01 1 13.26 18.31 19.72 68 Baxley : 70 46 58 0.03 1 11.66 13.97 15.30 65 Blairsville : 60 34 47 0.78 3 5.50 7.57 12.44 52 Blue Ridge : 60 36 48 1.19 3 7.02 9.58 17.01 52 Brunswick : 72 52 62 0.01 1 6.88 9.54 12.05 66 Byromville : 70 46 58 0.39 3 6.33 7.90 9.78 62 Byron : 70 44 57 0.04 1 10.68 14.10 15.59 60 Cairo : 73 48 60 0.00 0 13.17 16.72 18.43 63 Calhoun : 65 37 51 1.17 3 7.20 10.14 17.05 56 Camilla : 73 48 60 0.00 0 13.45 17.29 17.79 66 Cordele : 71 48 60 0.66 3 10.97 12.72 13.40 63 Covington : 66 43 54 1.36 3 11.60 17.43 20.06 56 Dahlonega : 61 38 49 1.76 2 8.64 12.24 18.63 53 Dallas : 65 40 53 0.83 3 6.13 10.13 14.24 55 Dawson : 72 46 59 0.00 0 11.90 13.13 15.10 63 Dearing : 69 45 57 1.09 3 9.12 15.20 14.86 60 Dixie : 73 48 61 0.00 0 10.53 13.31 14.91 66 Douglas : 70 47 59 0.02 1 14.84 17.03 18.03 63 Dublin : 71 47 59 0.00 0 8.72 10.62 12.02 63 Eatonton : 68 42 55 1.50 2 10.97 17.06 19.87 58 Elberton : 68 42 55 2.40 1 8.50 13.54 15.94 59 Ellijay : 61 35 48 1.00 4 6.09 8.84 14.44 52 Gainesville : 64 42 53 1.23 1 7.86 12.33 15.79 56 Georgetown : 71 45 58 0.01 1 11.29 12.24 15.59 63 Griffin : 66 43 55 0.33 1 9.54 15.64 19.47 58 Hatley : 70 47 58 0.49 3 9.37 11.60 12.88 62 Homerville : 73 47 60 0.01 1 8.14 14.47 16.51 67 Jeffersonville : 69 44 57 0.08 2 7.32 10.46 11.77 61 Johns Creek : 66 39 52 0.53 2 7.39 12.20 15.90 56 Jonesboro : 66 42 54 0.62 3 9.39 14.68 18.12 57 Lake Seminole : 72 52 62 0.01 1 13.04 15.05 11.74 64 Midville : 70 48 59 0.39 2 7.41 9.23 10.29 63 Moultrie : 72 49 60 0.00 0 14.31 19.25 20.43 63 Nahunta : 73 47 60 0.01 1 10.42 13.60 15.94 64 Newton : 74 48 61 0.00 0 15.50 19.85 21.71 65 Odum : 71 47 59 0.02 1 11.93 14.15 15.81 64 Ossabaw : 71 51 61 0.06 5 8.43 10.56 9.42 65 Pine Mountain : 68 42 55 0.21 3 12.33 16.45 20.31 58 Plains : 69 45 57 0.35 3 10.63 14.09 16.41 61 Roopville : 67 41 54 0.77 3 8.35 12.84 16.24 57 Rome : 67 39 53 1.67 3 8.59 13.36 21.49 55 Sasser : 72 46 59 0.05 1 11.17 12.69 13.97 61 Savannah : 73 49 61 0.03 1 7.02 9.58 10.90 65 Shellman : 72 47 59 0.02 1 8.87 9.92 11.91 66 Skidaway : 69 49 59 0.02 1 7.58 9.49 11.34 61 Sparta : 68 43 56 1.72 2 11.19 16.26 14.11 61 Statesboro : 71 47 59 0.11 2 6.54 8.39 9.29 66 Tennille : 69 44 56 0.73 3 10.14 13.57 15.04 61 Tifton : 71 49 60 0.00 0 14.10 16.39 18.03 62 Tiger : 59 36 47 1.44 2 9.21 12.26 17.77 53 Unadilla : 70 45 57 0.12 3 8.60 11.36 12.78 62 Valdosta : 73 50 62 0.00 0 9.07 13.24 14.60 67 Vienna : 70 47 59 1.38 3 12.69 17.27 19.11 61 Vidalia : 71 48 60 0.08 1 9.45 12.52 13.93 63 Wat-UGA : 66 42 54 0.36 2 8.86 14.88 17.87 56 Williamson : 67 43 55 0.00 0 10.43 15.00 18.35 57 Woodbine : 74 48 61 0.00 0 8.06 10.87 13.21 68 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- *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 April 13, 2009 DISTRICT 1 - NORTHWEST No comments available. DISTRICT 2 - NORTH CENTRAL Freezing temperatures threatened fruit crops this week, damage to grapes, strawberries, and blueberries was moderate - rain in the later part of the week improved soil moisture conditions - major activity was routine care of livestock and poultry. DISTRICT 3 - NORTHEAST Beneficial rainfall helped to improve groundwater and soil moisture condition. Conditions have improved with recent rains. More rain expected in the next few days. We have had about 5 inches of rain since Saturday, April 11. DISTRICT 4 - WEST CENTRAL Having issues with corn coming up. Two nights of freezing weather and frost that set back pastures and hayfields; some hail damage to corn and wheat; some corn planting continued in fields that had dried out enough for field activity. Routine care of livestock & poultry. Nutrients applied to hayfields & pastures. Waiting to see if any cold/freeze damage to wheat from last week cold snap. DISTRICT 5 - CENTRAL We received 2.68 inches of rain over the past 7 days which has pushed our surplus up. We were spared from the low temperatures that hit north Georgia. We fell to the high 30's on Tuesday, but we had no significant freeze damage. We have seen several instances of severe erosion due to the heavy rainfall. The weekend earthquake which hit the northwestern part of the county measured 2.2 in magnitude and was felt in many parts of the county. The earthquake was attributed to the heavy rains which over saturated the ground causing a shift in the plates. It has been interesting here in the county. Temperatures dropped to below freezing on Monday night, April 6. Disease showing up in wheat mainly powdery mildew. Wet fields. Planting slowed. Some stopped due to wet fields. Small grains appear to have escaped any widespread damage from cold and late frost. After only having less than 2 inches of rain from January 1 until February 15 since that time we have had over 18 inches of rain. The rain is starting to hinder ryegrass cutting and corn planting. DISTRICT 6 - EAST CENTRAL Places in fields still too wet to plant corn, continued pattern of rain has slowed and actually (slightly) reduced acres planted. Some corn planted in heavy soils and low spots is having reduced stands due to slow germination or even seed rotting. A lot of wheat was finally sprayed with fungicide although the high winds kept the planes grounded for several days. No wheat disease obvious but rainy weather keeps the probability pretty high for fields not sprayed. Lush ryegrass beginning to slow down and nights too cool for Bermuda growth. Rain predicted again today...wish we could save some for July! DISTRICT 7 - SOUTHWEST Corn was damaged most by the heavy rain last week. Several pastures are also flooded. Very few peaches in the county. Sand blasting and flooded areas of fields a problem. Heavy frost damaged to young corn in low areas. Heavy leaf burn. All corn stunted and yellow due to saturated soils. No field work this week due to heavy rains previous week. DISTRICT 8 - SOUTH CENTRAL Wet soils are delaying planting of tobacco and some replanting of corn. Clipping tobacco plants, trying to hold them back. Working on equipment and fixing ditches and roadways around farm that were damaged by the storms. May can start planting or getting into some fields by end of next week. Morning cold spelled did not damage any veggies. Yellow squash is getting a disease called Pcap caused by wet weather. Farmers concerned about loss or leaching of fertilizers and herbicides applied before the rains. Replant decisions being made on some fields. Cold spell did not seem to hurt wheat crop. Flooding conditions played havoc on agriculture in the county. Sunday hail storm damaged many crops. DISTRICT 9 - SOUTHEAST Not sure wheat about freeze damage yet, I do not think we will have a problem.