la-crop-weather State Louisiana Crop Weather Week Ending Date September 25, 2005 Days suitable for fieldwork: 5.4 Soil moisture supplies: 43% adequate and 57% surplus Field Crops Report Rain last weekend delayed field activities until later in the week. Cotton producers were busy harvesting cotton before the hurricane hit. Although Hurricane Rita wreaked much havoc for most of Louisiana, the full extent of the damage is not yet known, and the crop conditions in this report may not reflect their full extent. Crop damage is being assessed, and the first quantitative evaluations of loss will be reflected in the October 12, 2005, Crop Production Report. Heavy rains and powerful winds were reported across the state. Rainfall from Hurricane Rita ranged from 5 to 15 inches throughout Louisiana. Fruits, Vegetables, and Specialty Crops Report Vegetable producers continued planting fall crops. Strawberry producers were preparing for planting. Citrus producers were checking crops for ripeness. Livestock, Pasture, and Range Report Cattlemen were feeding hay last week in some of the dry areas of the state. Rain received from Hurricane Rita was needed to replenish dry pastures. Crop Progress Table PERCENT OF PROGRESS Last CROP STAGE 2005 Week 2004 5 YR AVG Cotton Open Bolls 98 97 87 93 Harvested 39 20 9 29 Hay Second Cutting 99 99 99 97 Rice Ripe 99 99 100 100 Harvested 92 88 99 95 Sorghum Harvested 99 99 100 96 Soybeans Turning Color 96 93 87 85 Dropping Leaves 83 77 75 71 Harvested 73 62 54 44 Sugarcane Planted 90 87 97 95 Sweet potatoes Harvested 32 26 18 35 Crop Condition Table CONDITIONS IN PERCENTAGES CROP VERY POOR POOR FAIR GOOD EXCELLENT Cotton 10 23 47 18 2 Sugarcane 15 17 44 24 0 Sweet potatoes 7 10 50 33 0 Livestock 6 22 47 25 0 Vegetables 31 17 49 3 0 Pasture 25 51 19 5 0 LOUISIANA OFFICE OF STATE CLIMATOLOGY, LSU, BATON ROUGE, LOUISIANA LOUISIANA WEATHER SUMMARY FROM 09/19/05 TO 09/25/05 AIR PRECIPITATION 4 INCH SOIL TEMPERATURE WEEKLY FOUR YR.TO TEMPERATURE MAX MIN AVE NRM TOTAL WEEKS DATE NORM MAX MIN AVE 1. Northwest LSU-Bossier City(104)70 85 74 5.96 6.04 31.00 37.14 Minden 102 71 85 74 4.45 5.05 29.74 40.20 Mooringsport 100 72 84 MM 5.89 7.21 29.45 33.58 Extreme/Average 104 70 85 74 5.43 6.10 30.23 38.12 2. North-Central LSU-Calhoun 103 68 84 74 2.62 2.66 33.22 40.60 Homer/Hill Farm 99 70 83 73 4.15 4.57 36.15 40.53 ULM-Monroe 104 66 84 74 3.11 3.14 29.78 42.12 Winnfield 100 60 82 74 4.17 4.29 37.86 43.36 Extreme/Average 104 60 83 74 3.51 3.67 34.25 41.49 3. Northeast Lake Providence 100 73 84 74 5.22 7.72 35.74 42.91 LSU-St Joseph 101 (58) 81 75 6.76 8.32 36.02 41.82 MM MM MM LSU-Winnsboro 102 64 83 74 5.98 6.53 38.20 41.11 Tallulah MM MM MM 74 0.00 0.71 33.90 43.05 Extreme/Average 102 58 82 75 5.99 8.02 35.88 42.15 MM MM MM 4. West-Central Leesville MM MM MM 74 0.00 0.08 31.32 41.94 LSU-Rosepine MM MM MM 75 0.00 0.32 30.22 42.98 MM MM MM Natchitoches MM MM MM 75 0.00 0.69 26.68 39.70 Extreme/Average MM MM MM 75 M.MM M.MM MM.MM 40.82 MM MM MM 5. Central Alexandria 101 72 86 77 0.00 0.04 24.86 43.77 Brusly 96 68 81 75 7.32 11.86 43.71 48.19 Bunkie 100 71 83 76 16.00 16.50 52.67 45.08 LSU-Alexandria 101 65 81 75 7.98 8.16 34.22 42.58 MM MM MM Extreme/Average 101 65 82 76 10.43 12.17 43.53 44.46 MM MM MM 6. East-Central Bogalusa 97 72 84 76 1.19 1.19 35.68 49.64 LSU-Baton Rouge 97 68 82 76 7.58 11.07 38.96 47.24 LSU-Clinton 96 71 82 75 5.35 9.05 40.58 47.80 LSU-Hammond MM MM MM 76 M.MM 0.00 34.50 49.67 MM MM MM Slidell 96 MM MM 77 0.71 0.71 58.96 49.05 Extreme/Average 97 68 82 76 7.58 11.07 38.96 49.55 MM MM MM 7. Southwest De Ridder 101 70 86 76 0.00 0.03 31.11 44.54 Jennings 98 70 84 77 9.39 10.14 42.32 44.98 MM MM MM LSU-Crowley MM MM MM 77 0.00 1.78 35.23 45.21 MM MM MM Extreme/Average 101 70 MM 77 M.MM M.MM MM.MM 45.82 MM MM MM 8. South-Central Donaldsonville 95 71 82 77 4.71 7.23 41.42 47.65 LSU-Jeanerette MM MM MM 76 9.21 13.40 47.55 48.26 Morgan City 95 74 84 77 0.40 3.06 36.24 50.94 Extreme/Average 95 71 82 77 4.71 7.23 41.42 48.71 9. Southeast Galliano 94 72 84 77 0.00 0.00 55.01 52.27 Houma 96 72 83 78 4.47 9.91 58.51 50.78 MM MM MM NO Audubon Park MM MM MM 79 2.29 2.29 54.32 50.38 Reserve 97 74 84 77 4.76 5.26 44.44 51.14 Extreme/Average 97 72 84 78 4.62 M.MM MM.MM 50.52 MM MM MM State State Averages 104 58 83 76 6.33 8.38 37.90 44.05 MM MM MM