Mi-crop-weather State Michigan Crop Weather Released October 25, 2004 Week Ending Date October 24, 2004 Issue MI-CW4304 Agricultural Summary Scattered Precipitation Five days were suitable for fieldwork during the week ending October 24, according to the USDA-NASS-Michigan Statistical Office. Cloudy skies, near normal temperatures and scattered showers covered most of the State during the week. Even with the damp weather, farmers were able to make progress on their fall tasks. The cloud cover limited crop dry down, but did help moderate temperatures. Averages ranged from 2 degrees below normal in the central and southwest Lower Peninsula to 1 degree above normal in the west central Lower Peninsula. Precipitation was highly variable across the State. Most areas were dry enough that any rainfall received was welcomed, even though it delayed harvest and fall tillage. Precipitation amounts ranged from 0.26 inches in the southeast Lower Peninsula to 1.47 inches in the west central Lower Peninsula. A farmer in the southeast noted, "The weather was cool and cloudy all week, with rain at the end of the week. Harvest continued, except when moisture prohibited it." A grower on the other side of the State, in the southwest, commented, "Yields are a pleasant surprise. Let's hope for another couple weeks of good weather to finish up harvesting." Field Crops Report Field Crops Wet weather across the State last week slowed harvesting for some farmers, rain did restore moisture in the soil. Soybean harvest continued for some producers, but for others, wet weather put a halt on harvesting. Corn harvested for silage was completed. Corn harvest for seed and grain was ongoing. High moisture remains a major concern with the corn crop. Farmers were still waiting for corn to dry down. The weather was excellent for sugarbeet harvest. Harvest continued, at a rapid pace. Dry bean harvest was completed. Winter wheat planting neared completion. Fruit, Vegetable, and Specialty Crops Report Fruit Growers finished harvesting apples in the south. In the Ridge area, growers were finishing up late season varieties such as Ida Red and Red Delicious. Vegetables Harvest of late season vegetable crops continued. Potato harvest was ongoing. Although cool temperatures limited digging over the week, some areas were nearing completion. Carrot harvest continued, with progress about on par with average. Pumpkin harvest moved along. A fair amount of the crop was still in the field. Processing squash harvest was underway in the west central. Soil Moisture and Crop Condition Tables Soil moisture for week ending 10/24/04 --------------------------------------------- : Very : : : Stratum : short : Short :Adequate:Surplus --------------------------------------------- : Percent : Topsoil : 7 28 62 3 Subsoil : 13 37 48 2 --------------------------------------------- Crop condition for week ending 10/24/04 ----------------------------------------------------------- : Very : : : : Crop : poor : Poor : Fair : Good :Excellent ----------------------------------------------------------- : Percent : Corn : 3 11 30 35 21 Pasture : 6 22 43 22 7 Winter Wheat : 4 11 46 34 5 ----------------------------------------------------------- Crop progress for week ending 10/24/04 ------------------------------------------------------------ : This : Last : Last :5-year Crop : week : week : year :average ------------------------------------------------------------ : Percent : All hay, fourth cutting : 80 73 73 76 Apples, harvested : 88 82 NA NA Corn, mature : 94 90 96 97 Corn, harvested : 34 19 24 39 Potatoes, harvested : 95 80 NA NA Soybeans, dropping leaves : 98 94 100 99 Soybeans, harvested : 65 52 83 71 Sugarbeets, harvested : 36 9 62 57 Winter wheat, planted : 93 84 89 90 Winter wheat, emerged : 56 40 55 59 ------------------------------------------------------------ Contact Information U.S. Department of Agriculture National Agricultural Statistics Service Michigan Statistical Office P.O. Box 26248 Lansing, MI 48909-6248 517-324-5300; or 800-453-7501 Fax 517-324-5299 email: nass-mi@nass.usda.gov Web Page: http:/www.nass.usda.gov/mi Weather Information Table Michigan Weather Summary for Week Ending 10/24/04 1/ ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : :Cumulative growing: : Temperature : degree days 2/ : Precipitation :------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : : : : : : : : : : : Normal Station : : :Departure: : : :This:Last :Last : Since :------------- :Maximum :Minimum : from :2004 :2003 :Normal:week: two :four :April 1: Since : For : : : normal : : : : :weeks:weeks: :April 1:month ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Ironwood : 63 30 1,943 2,169 1.10 1.62 3.13 22.21 Marquette : 59 31 1,846 2,074 0.90 1.88 3.04 21.92 Stephenson : 59 30 2,217 2,396 2.19 2.56 4.48 22.23 Western UP : 63 27 0 1,957 2,153 2,022 1.18 1.68 3.22 20.24 21.93 2.57 : Cornell : 56 30 1,945 2,272 1.16 2.82 4.56 23.21 Sault St Marie : 55 30 1,677 1,996 1.32 2.99 4.75 22.10 Eastern UP : 58 24 -1 1,718 2,003 1,775 1.03 2.18 3.96 20.35 21.04 2.57 : Beulah : 62 36 2,284 2,365 1.51 2.67 3.75 24.21 Lake City : 59 33 2,205 2,223 0.97 1.82 2.95 20.35 Old Mission : 59 33 2,208 2,346 1.18 2.84 3.95 22.52 Pellston : 57 28 2,091 2,225 0.79 2.05 4.02 19.28 Northwest : 62 28 0 2,142 2,250 2,319 0.99 2.25 3.53 20.80 20.35 2.75 : Alpena : 56 31 2,179 2,208 0.57 1.58 2.64 17.71 Houghton Lake : 59 29 2,312 2,351 0.42 1.02 2.99 19.22 Rogers City : 58 33 2,188 2,317 0.55 1.54 2.75 20.34 Northeast : 61 29 -1 2,207 2,317 2,239 0.57 1.43 2.72 18.91 19.97 2.40 : Fremont : 63 33 2,562 2,673 1.52 1.91 3.28 20.76 Hart : 65 33 2,417 2,510 1.39 1.96 3.45 22.79 Muskegon : 65 33 2,590 2,778 1.84 2.18 3.40 23.98 West Central : 65 33 1 2,482 2,592 2,538 1.47 2.05 3.32 23.77 20.54 2.94 : Alma : 61 33 2,677 2,692 1.03 1.46 2.56 23.69 Big Rapids : 61 33 2,500 2,464 1.45 1.91 3.91 24.10 Central : 61 33 -2 2,615 2,576 2,622 1.20 1.61 2.87 23.00 21.08 2.59 : Bad Axe : 58 38 2,491 2,389 0.00 0.95 1.58 19.63 Pigeon : 58 36 2,467 2,383 0.17 0.95 1.34 20.42 Saginaw : 61 33 2,707 2,645 0.33 0.96 1.51 18.69 Standish : 60 34 2,440 2,353 0.36 0.80 1.52 19.44 East Central : 61 33 0 2,487 2,459 2,638 0.27 1.01 1.63 19.96 18.83 2.41 : Fennville : 65 36 2,641 2,664 1.24 1.82 2.01 16.18 Grand Rapids : 64 35 2,927 2,753 1.53 2.51 3.89 25.70 Holland : 65 34 2,734 2,744 1.62 2.30 3.53 19.14 South Bend, IN : 67 37 3,090 2,954 0.49 1.00 1.77 24.99 Watervliet : 65 35 2,823 2,697 0.82 1.96 2.93 26.45 Southwest : 68 33 -2 2,828 2,773 2,887 1.09 1.93 3.00 24.26 21.94 2.99 : Belding : 63 33 2,668 2,622 0.85 1.21 3.00 25.18 Coldwater : 61 34 2,751 2,552 0.77 1.35 3.15 24.94 Lansing : 63 37 2,796 2,714 0.40 1.12 1.60 23.49 South Central : 66 32 -1 2,790 2,723 2,832 0.48 1.25 2.11 24.02 21.09 2.41 : Detroit : 61 38 3,124 3,014 0.28 0.47 0.79 20.66 Flint : 61 30 2,840 2,835 0.11 0.50 1.11 19.63 Romeo : 59 29 2,816 2,651 0.35 1.62 2.36 25.40 Tipton : 61 33 2,810 2,691 0.29 1.24 2.16 20.22 Toledo, OH : 63 31 3,157 3,034 0.45 1.82 2.30 19.67 Southeast : 63 29 -1 2,866 2,837 2,830 0.26 1.19 1.85 21.94 20.06 2.33 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ Issued by the Federal/State Michigan Agricultural Statistics Service in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Commerce, Michigan State University's Cooperative Extension Service, Agricultural Meteorologist, Department of Geography, and Crop Advisory Team ALERTS. 2/ Growing degree days (GDD) is the sum of daily mean temperatures minus 50 per day, 86 maximum And 50 minimum. The GDD is accumulative from April 1.