mi-crop-weather State Michigan Crop Weather Released August 20, 2007 Week Ending Date August 19, 2007 Issue MI-CW3307 Agricultural Summary Drought Relief Six days were suitable for fieldwork during the week ending August 19, according to the USDA, NASS, Michigan Field Office. Precipitation varied from 0.06 inches in the Upper Peninsula to 2.25 inches in the southwest Lower Peninsula. Average temperatures ranged from 4 degrees below normal in the south central Lower Peninsula to 1 degree below normal in the eastern Upper Peninsula. Farmers greatly appreciated the rainfall seen in much of the State, providing certain crops with relief from the recent dry weather. Unfortunately, not all crops were able to benefit from the additional moisture. A farmer in the west central Lower Peninsula mentioned that, "While we received a limited amount of rain this weekend, little or no assistance was given to corn, hay, and other crops. The rain came too late to provide any drought relief." Another reporter in the south central Lower Peninsula said that, "The rain has arrived, but it's much too late to do any positive good regarding crop yields for corn and soybeans. The moisture recharge should help the alfalfa go into next season in good condition." Field Crops Report Field Crops Cooler temperatures and light precipitation were welcomed during the week as growers hoped to receive adequate moisture to relieve the drought conditions across the State. The rainfall may have come too late to be very beneficial to extremely stressed crops in some areas. Corn development was primarily in the dough stage and the condition continued to vary depending on the amount of rainfall received. The soybean crop showed signs of improvement with the cooler temperatures and light rain as the crop continued setting and filling pods. The added moisture should also help the plants compensate for damage caused by spider mites. Alfalfa re-growth was slow and spotty and continued to be very short; harvest of a third cutting continued in some areas. Dry beans continued setting pods and leaves began turning in some areas. Oat harvest continued in some areas. Sugarbeets continued to add growth and were in good condition overall. Fruit, Vegetable, and Specialty Crops Report Fruit The first harvest of fruit crops has been about two weeks ahead of normal. Trees have responded well to the increased moisture. The harvest of early apple varieties continued. Gala harvest will begin this week. Blueberry harvest wound down; Elliot harvest neared completion. Pear harvest began. Late season fresh market peaches were harvested; processing peach harvest continued in the west central. Tart cherry harvest was completed. Fall raspberry picking continued. Veraison began in Concord grapes. Grape berry moth numbers were up. Vegetables Rains improved the conditions of some vegetable crops but also increased disease problems. Carrot harvest continued for fresh markets and for processing. Celery harvest continued with good quality reported. Potato harvest continued for fresh markets and for processing. There were reports of Alternaria early blight and Colorado potato beetles in some fields. Sweet corn harvest continued with good quality. Recent rains helped to improve the crop condition. Watermelon and cantaloup harvest continued with good size and quality. Cucumber harvest continued. Disease pressures were low for most areas except the southeast, where Downy Mildew was present in some fields. Zucchini and summer squash harvest continued. Pumpkins and winter squash continued to mature. Fields in the west central were ripening sooner than normal. Powdery Mildew continued to be a problem in some fields across the State. Tomato and pepper harvest continued for both fresh market and for processing. Snap beans continued to grow. Early onion harvest began. Cabbage and other cole crops for fall harvest were developing quickly. Soil Moisture and Crop Condition Tables Soil moisture for week ending 08/19/07 --------------------------------------------- : Very : : : Stratum : short : Short :Adequate:Surplus --------------------------------------------- : Percent : Topsoil : 55 22 16 7 Subsoil : 53 30 15 2 --------------------------------------------- Crop condition for week ending 08/19/07 ----------------------------------------------------------- : Very : : : : Crop : poor : Poor : Fair : Good :Excellent ----------------------------------------------------------- : Percent : All Hay : 36 25 26 11 2 Corn : 15 26 36 21 2 Dry beans : 6 20 58 15 1 Pasture : 34 28 24 11 3 Soybeans : 11 22 38 20 9 ----------------------------------------------------------- Crop progress for week ending 08/19/07 ---------------------------------------------------------------- : This : Last : Last : 5-year Crop : week : week : year :average ---------------------------------------------------------------- : Percent : All hay, second cutting : 95 92 89 87 All hay, third cutting : 33 27 50 35 Blueberries, harvested : 90 71 60 NA Corn, dough : 77 42 74 43 Corn, dent : 20 3 24 9 Dry beans, blooming : 100 92 100 98 Dry beans, setting pods : 98 75 100 83 Dry beans, turning leaves : 8 1 36 13 Oats, harvested : 95 68 92 78 Peaches, harvested : 55 36 35 NA Potatoes, harvested : 5 4 17 NA Soybeans, setting pods : 96 79 91 87 Soybeans, turning leaves : 1 0 3 1 ---------------------------------------------------------------- Contact Information U.S. Department of Agriculture National Agricultural Statistics Service Michigan Field 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 08/19/07 1/ ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : :Cumulative growing: : Temperature : degree days 2/ : Precipitation :------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : : : : : : : : : : : Normal Station : : :Departure: : : :This:Last :Last : Since :------------- :Maximum :Minimum : from :2007 :2006 :Normal:week: two :four :April 1: Since : For : : : normal : : : : :weeks:weeks: :April 1:month ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Ironwood : 79 39 1,794 1,833 0.06 0.25 0.62 8.63 Marquette : 80 38 1,702 1,690 0.00 0.03 0.59 10.97 Stephenson : 90 38 1,885 1,876 0.00 0.00 0.00 7.05 Western UP : 90 35 -3 1,786 1,787 1,467 0.06 0.14 0.41 7.27 14.72 3.69 : Cornell : 82 40 1,830 1,793 0.05 0.36 0.36 8.69 Sault St Marie : 77 43 1,655 1,693 0.15 0.28 0.43 7.45 Eastern UP : 82 40 -1 1,669 1,670 1,274 0.06 0.22 0.27 9.32 13.89 3.53 : Beulah : 83 43 1,970 1,960 0.43 0.45 0.45 11.91 Lake City : 83 36 1,868 1,843 0.08 0.49 0.53 11.15 Old Mission : 83 46 1,860 1,902 0.04 1.13 1.29 7.16 Pellston : 81 34 1,801 1,878 0.00 0.18 0.86 7.37 Northwest : 83 34 -2 1,843 1,848 1,655 0.11 0.99 1.17 9.45 13.08 3.11 : Alpena : 87 40 1,852 1,921 0.00 0.17 0.17 12.47 Houghton Lake : 82 33 1,876 1,924 0.41 0.87 0.94 11.54 Rogers City : 84 38 1,840 1,969 0.14 0.84 0.92 12.26 Northeast : 87 33 -3 1,855 1,919 1,606 0.19 0.80 0.85 11.82 13.12 3.12 : Fremont : 85 45 2,068 2,095 0.44 1.08 1.09 10.75 Hart : 79 42 1,965 1,966 0.52 0.64 0.65 8.74 Muskegon : 81 49 2,115 2,118 1.74 2.99 3.55 11.69 West Central : 85 27 -3 2,011 2,035 1,809 0.78 1.31 1.48 11.07 13.33 3.60 : Alma : 85 45 2,177 2,130 1.28 1.82 1.99 14.04 Big Rapids : 84 42 2,015 1,984 0.58 1.35 1.86 13.96 Central : 85 41 -3 2,082 2,067 1,881 0.77 1.31 1.92 12.17 14.24 3.64 : Bad Axe : 84 49 2,014 2,060 0.23 1.72 1.72 9.13 Pigeon : 85 49 1,930 2,032 0.43 1.45 1.45 9.84 Saginaw : 83 43 2,168 2,164 1.05 3.52 3.73 13.90 Standish : 84 39 1,952 1,992 0.29 0.77 0.77 11.69 East Central : 85 39 -3 1,987 2,071 1,870 0.52 1.93 2.12 11.31 12.92 2.93 : Fennville : 80 48 2,086 2,051 1.97 3.07 4.86 12.32 Grand Rapids : 85 50 2,371 2,285 2.16 3.10 3.43 13.32 Holland : 85 47 2,297 2,243 3.44 4.09 5.15 13.06 South Bend, IN : 82 54 2,461 2,324 2.63 4.45 9.00 19.57 Watervliet : 81 49 2,264 2,233 2.34 4.05 6.13 14.94 Southwest : 85 45 -3 2,251 2,186 2,031 2.25 3.69 5.48 15.00 14.93 3.18 : Belding : 83 43 2,081 2,109 0.55 1.38 2.08 9.47 Coldwater : 83 45 2,128 2,152 1.38 2.80 3.60 12.90 Lansing : 84 44 2,213 2,222 2.29 2.90 3.54 13.20 South Central : 84 43 -4 2,161 2,213 2,008 1.33 2.49 3.32 12.98 14.86 3.36 : Detroit : 86 53 2,398 2,450 1.06 2.59 4.28 13.26 Flint : 85 44 2,174 2,125 0.81 1.99 2.06 14.29 Romeo : 88 48 2,107 2,248 1.61 3.54 5.09 18.09 Tipton : 84 48 2,171 2,179 2.40 5.36 7.96 17.93 Toledo, OH : 84 50 2,347 2,426 3.90 7.14 9.70 23.77 Southeast : 88 41 -3 2,183 2,272 1,995 1.81 3.94 5.88 15.45 14.40 3.12 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/ Issued by the USDA, NASS, Michigan Field Office 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.