ga-crop-weather State Georgia Crop Weather Week Ending Date May 10, 2009 Issue GA-CW1909 Agricultural Summary May 11, 2009 RAIN CONTINUED Rain, throughout the week, brought relief to some farmers, according to the USDA, NASS, Georgia Field Office. Daily average high temperatures were in the high 70's to lower 80's. Average lows were in the lower 60's. Soil moisture conditions were rated at 2% very short, 16% short, 67% adequate, and 15% surplus. In many areas the ground was too wet to get any work done. Some farmers had difficulties putting up ryegrass hay due to rains. Fertilizer was washed out of corn fields. Wet conditions kept corn from emerging in some fields. Pig weed is an increasing problem in corn, due to not being able to spray sooner. Soybean, cotton, and peanut planting continued as topsoil moisture allowed. Wheat looked good but some rust and powdery mildew damage has appeared in some areas. Other activities included preparing land for planting, spreading poultry litter and side dressing nitrogen on tobacco. County Extension Agents reported an average of 4.5 days suitable for fieldwork. Crop Progress for Week Ending 05/10/09 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Crop Stage : This Week : Prev Week : Prev Year : 5 Year Avg -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Percent : Corn Planted : 98 94 98 97 Corn Emerged : 92 85 94 91 Soybeans Planted : 12 7 14 13 Soybeans Emerged : 2 0 7 6 Sorghum Planted : 15 12 33 25 Cotton Planted : 22 10 30 31 Winter Wheat Headed : 96 91 96 96 Apples Blooming : 86 85 100 100 Onions Harvested : 46 28 43 45 Peaches Harvested : 1 0 1 2 Peanuts Planted : 13 5 18 17 Tobacco Transplanted : 94 77 97 94 Watermelons Planted : 95 91 96 95 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Crop Condition for Week Ending 05/10/09 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Crop :Very Poor : Poor : Fair : Good :Excellent -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Percent : Corn : 2 7 33 52 6 Winter Wheat : 0 4 33 53 10 Range and Pasture : 1 6 33 54 6 Apples : 0 0 25 50 25 Hay : 1 4 39 53 3 Onions : 0 0 20 78 2 Peaches : 0 15 24 61 0 Tobacco : 0 1 33 59 7 Watermelons : 0 10 42 42 6 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Topsoil Moisture for Week Ending 05/10/09 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : This Week :Previous Week : 5 Year Avg -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Percent : Very Short : 2 1 15 Short : 16 31 32 Adequate : 67 64 48 Surplus : 15 4 5 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Topsoil Moisture for Week Ending 05/10/09, by District -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- District : Very Short : Short : Adequate : Surplus -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Percent : District 1 (NW) : 0 0 59 41 District 2 (NC) : 0 1 73 26 District 3 (NE) : 0 0 70 30 District 4 (WC) : 0 13 70 17 District 5 (C) : 2 26 62 10 District 6 (EC) : 0 13 66 21 District 7 (SW) : 6 24 64 6 District 8 (SC) : 5 26 64 5 District 9 (SE) : 1 13 86 0 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- * 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 05/10/09, by District -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- District : Very Poor : Poor : Fair : Good : Excellent -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Percent : District 1 (NW) : 1 5 40 53 1 District 2 (NC) : 0 0 10 84 6 District 3 (NE) : 0 0 14 59 27 District 4 (WC) : 0 10 29 54 7 District 5 (C) : 2 13 29 52 4 District 6 (EC) : 0 10 33 54 3 District 7 (SW) : 0 7 39 47 7 District 8 (SC) : 0 1 49 47 3 District 9 (SE) : 0 1 35 63 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 05/10/09, by Station Location ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Temperature : Precipitation : Location :-----------------:-------------------------------------:Soil : Max : Min : Avg :Weekly : Days :30 Day :60 Day:Season :Temp ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Alapaha : 85 65 75 1.69 1 3.50 17.22 21.60 74 Albany : 85 68 76 0.73 3 3.41 17.88 20.86 80 Alma : 87 65 76 0.29 1 2.98 16.06 19.77 74 Alpharetta : 79 62 70 1.43 5 4.67 11.88 21.38 71 Arabi : 84 66 75 0.43 3 2.94 14.19 17.38 75 Arlington : 86 66 76 0.66 3 4.16 17.03 23.13 76 Atlanta : 79 64 72 1.12 4 4.22 10.19 15.73 NA Attapulgus : 87 66 76 0.04 1 1.83 15.09 21.55 83 Baxley : 85 63 74 1.15 1 3.42 15.09 18.72 78 Blairsville : 75 56 66 2.75 5 5.42 11.08 17.85 66 Blue Ridge : 74 58 66 3.42 5 8.47 15.74 25.49 67 Brunswick : 89 69 79 0.00 0 1.64 8.51 13.68 76 Byromville : 83 65 74 3.20 5 5.48 14.28 15.02 74 Byron : 84 65 74 0.99 5 3.01 13.69 18.60 72 Cairo : 86 67 76 0.11 1 2.33 15.50 20.76 71 Calhoun : 78 61 69 1.51 3 5.85 13.52 22.89 69 Camilla : 86 66 76 2.30 4 5.66 19.11 23.45 78 Cordele : 84 67 75 0.31 4 1.82 12.78 15.21 75 Covington : 81 60 71 0.69 4 3.37 14.96 23.42 72 Dahlonega : 75 59 67 2.37 5 5.68 14.41 24.31 68 Dallas : 78 63 71 1.70 6 6.09 12.23 20.32 70 Danielsville : 80 63 72 0.85 4 2.83 10.87 19.75 73 Dawson : 83 65 74 0.59 4 2.17 14.07 17.27 76 Dearing : 81 65 73 2.59 4 3.50 11.71 18.35 73 Dixie : 86 66 76 0.00 0 2.24 12.77 17.15 80 Douglas : 85 61 73 0.94 2 3.04 17.90 21.07 75 Dublin : 84 65 75 0.28 4 2.35 11.07 14.37 75 Dunwoody : 77 60 68 2.16 3 7.73 14.58 21.36 70 Eatonton : 81 62 72 0.69 4 4.07 15.04 23.94 73 Elberton : 81 63 72 3.45 6 5.12 13.62 21.06 72 Ellijay : 75 58 67 2.77 6 6.09 12.38 20.52 69 Gainesville : 78 63 70 1.71 5 4.47 12.33 20.26 71 Georgetown : 81 63 72 3.12 4 4.95 16.24 20.54 75 Griffin : 80 64 72 0.69 5 2.63 12.17 22.10 71 Hatley : 85 66 75 0.24 3 2.49 11.85 15.36 73 Homerville : 88 63 76 0.00 0 2.72 10.88 19.23 77 Jeffersonville : 82 63 72 0.44 3 1.87 9.18 13.63 75 Johns Creek : 80 60 70 1.63 4 4.70 12.09 20.60 70 Jonesboro : 81 64 73 0.96 7 5.62 14.92 23.65 73 Lake Seminole : 84 69 76 0.01 1 1.80 14.84 13.54 74 Midville : 82 66 74 4.29 3 5.78 12.95 15.83 75 Moultrie : 85 67 76 0.31 1 2.72 17.03 23.15 79 Nahunta : 89 62 76 0.20 1 2.27 12.69 18.21 79 Newton : 87 66 76 0.28 2 3.26 18.76 24.97 78 Odum : 87 63 75 1.31 3 3.31 15.24 19.12 76 Ossabaw : 86 67 76 0.46 2 1.83 10.25 11.24 78 Pine Mountain : 82 64 73 1.40 5 4.62 16.95 24.93 73 Plains : 81 63 72 1.60 4 3.68 14.23 20.01 75 Roopville : 81 64 72 1.38 5 5.27 13.59 21.48 72 Rome : 79 63 71 2.35 6 6.07 15.09 27.48 70 Sasser : 83 65 74 0.85 4 2.53 13.70 16.50 73 Savannah : 87 63 75 0.27 1 2.97 9.96 13.84 75 Shellman : 84 65 75 0.73 3 2.09 10.96 14.00 79 Skidaway : 86 67 76 0.61 2 2.51 10.09 13.85 75 Sparta : 82 63 72 0.36 4 1.71 12.90 15.82 73 Statesboro : 84 64 74 1.39 2 2.92 9.36 12.11 79 Tennille : 81 63 72 5.56 3 7.13 16.97 21.85 74 Tifton : 83 68 75 1.67 2 3.93 18.09 21.96 74 Tiger : 75 56 66 2.77 5 6.29 15.61 24.06 67 Unadilla : 82 65 74 1.04 5 2.87 11.41 15.59 74 Valdosta : 87 67 77 0.05 2 2.41 11.55 17.01 78 Vienna : 83 66 75 0.83 4 2.74 15.42 21.84 72 Vidalia : 85 66 75 0.38 3 2.01 11.45 15.94 77 Wat-UGA : 80 63 72 1.51 4 3.76 12.62 21.63 72 Williamson : 81 64 72 0.83 4 2.88 13.31 21.23 72 Woodbine : 90 63 76 0.05 2 2.12 10.18 15.33 78 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- *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 May 10, 2009 DISTRICT 1 - NORTHWEST Received 7" of rain in one week has everything saturated! Producers cannot cut hay or plant because it is too wet! In the last 2 weeks we've had a total of 5.8 inches of rain. The ground is too saturated to get any work done consistently. DISTRICT 2 - NORTH CENTRAL No comments available. DISTRICT 3 - NORTHEAST Rainfall is very beneficial to pasture restoration, but could hamper the hay crop. Very difficult for farmers to dry quality hay with frequent showers. DISTRICT 4 - WEST CENTRAL Corn is looking better. Some cotton and soybeans are going in the ground. DISTRICT 5 - CENTRAL We have had rainfall on four out of the past seven days. We had 0.13 on 5/2, 0.05 on 5/4, 0.15 on 5/6. Much of our planting has slowed but the rainfall is welcomed and appreciated. Difficult to put up ryegrass hay this week because of persistent rain. Scatter rains showers. Topsoil moisture is short in some parts of the county. Soybean, cotton, and peanut planting continues as topsoil moisture allows. Spraying for weeds in corn. Wheat looking good but have found some rust and powdery mildew damage. Some wheat fields beginning to reach dough stage. We are in a catch 22, we need rain for planting but need dry weather for wheat to finish. DISTRICT 6 - EAST CENTRAL Parts of the county received 8 inches of rain this week with scattered rain over the rest of the county. Peanut and cotton planting is delayed at least until next week. Entire county received from 3.5 to 7 inches this week and fields are much too wet for fertilizing, much less any planting. Nitrogen washed out of corn fields in many places. Wet, soggy ground and cloudy conditions kept corn from emerging in some places and we have a lot of areas with weak stands. Earliest planted corn, March 3-10, looks the best. Wheat blown down in places from hard rains and wind. Bedded fields washed pretty badly. Hope to get in the field by Wednesday but more rain could come first of the week. Planting will no doubt be done 16 hours a day when conditions finally improve. Pig weeds in corn getting too big for atrazine to control due to not being able to spray sooner. This season is already off to a shaky start. DISTRICT 7 - SOUTHWEST Dry! DISTRICT 8 - SOUTH CENTRAL Could use some rain. Preparing land for planting and spreading poultry litter. Side dressing nitrogen on tobacco. Planting some cotton and peanuts. A few are irrigating corn. Small amount of rain this week - 0.3 to 1" This week has been very dry, we need rainfall to occur! This is three and half week since we have had rain in the county. DISTRICT 9 - SOUTHEAST Most all of the corn in the county has been replanted after the 15 - 18 inches of rain in April.