mi-crop-weather State Michigan Crop Weather Released November 30, 2009 Week Ending Date November 29, 2009 Issue MI-CW4809 Agricultural Summary Working to Finish Harvest Five days were suitable for fieldwork during the week ending November 29, according to the USDA, NASS, Michigan Field Office. Precipitation varied from 0.35 inch in the western Upper Peninsula to 0.98 inch in the northwestern Lower Peninsula. Average temperatures ranged from 5 degrees above normal in the southwestern Lower Peninsula to 10 degrees above normal in the Upper Peninsula and northeastern Lower Peninsula. The week began with warm and dry conditions, which allowed many farmers to progress in the fields before the Thanksgiving holiday, and rain arrived to hinder all field activities. Some areas experienced light snow cover as well. High moisture content remains a consistent stumbling block for growers, as time spent waiting at elevators also took away from time spent in the fields. The harvest of corn for grain continued to slowly move forward. Farmers reported visible mold on corn ears. Harvest progress varied from nearly complete in the Upper Peninsula to just over fifty percent complete in the west central. Growers who have completed harvest were working to complete fall tillage for the season. Reports on winter wheat were positive as the crop appears to have enough growth to sustain the crop through winter. Field activities for the week focused primarily on harvesting corn, fall tillage and clean-up of equipment for storage through the winter months. Last Issue for 2009 This concludes the 2009 Crop Weather season. Reports will resume in late April 2010. Monthly weather comments for the winter months, plus some weekly statistics for April will be available at www.nass.usda.gov. A special thanks to all of the regular Crop Weather reporters. Your time and effort made this publication possible and ensured an up-to-date and accurate representation of Michigan agriculture. Thank you! Soil Moisture and Crop Condition Tables Soil moisture for week ending 11/29/09 --------------------------------------------- : Very : : : Stratum : short : Short :Adequate:Surplus --------------------------------------------- : Percent : Topsoil : 0 0 77 23 Subsoil : 1 4 82 13 --------------------------------------------- Crop condition for week ending 11/29/09 ----------------------------------------------------------- : Very : : : : Crop : poor : Poor : Fair : Good :Excellent ----------------------------------------------------------- : Percent : Winter Wheat : 1 5 25 57 12 ----------------------------------------------------------- Crop progress for week ending 11/29/09 ---------------------------------------------------------------- : This : Last : Last : 5-year Crop : week : week : year :average ---------------------------------------------------------------- : Percent : Corn, harvested : 76 60 94 93 ---------------------------------------------------------------- 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 11/29/09 1/ ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : :Cumulative growing: : Temperature : degree days 2/ : Precipitation :------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : : : : : : : : : : : Normal Station : : :Departure: : : :This:Last :Last : Since :------------- :Maximum :Minimum : from :2009 :2008 :Normal:week: two :four :April 1: Since : For : : : normal : : : : :weeks:weeks: :April 1:month ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Ironwood : 52 25 1,890 2,048 0.42 0.66 0.74 19.55 Marquette : 45 27 1,727 1,911 0.42 0.66 0.74 21.60 Stephenson : 48 22 2,157 2,372 0.36 0.47 0.52 22.33 Western UP : 52 18 10 1,870 1,992 2,050 0.35 0.59 0.67 20.43 25.00 2.54 : Cornell : 46 28 3,003 2,237 0.68 0.73 0.94 19.24 Sault St Marie : 47 31 1,749 1,947 1.10 1.13 1.39 21.71 Eastern UP : 48 28 10 1,952 1,954 1,790 0.76 0.80 1.07 22.73 24.13 2.65 : Beulah : 50 31 2,231 2,605 1.51 1.69 1.76 25.54 Lake City : 47 27 2,102 2,416 0.95 1.08 1.17 27.34 Old Mission : 51 32 2,111 2,488 0.96 1.05 1.23 20.16 Pellston : 51 28 1,964 2,296 0.72 0.78 0.86 20.29 Northwest : 51 27 9 2,049 2,384 2,364 0.98 1.08 1.31 21.47 23.49 2.69 : Alpena : 52 29 2,091 2,401 0.21 0.36 0.62 27.23 Houghton Lake : 47 25 2,111 2,460 0.91 1.00 1.16 24.49 Rogers City : 51 32 2,029 2,366 0.88 0.91 1.00 30.21 Northeast : 52 25 10 2,073 2,393 2,282 0.62 0.74 0.90 25.80 22.88 2.57 : Fremont : 50 27 2,437 2,691 0.62 1.14 1.18 25.36 Hart : 50 28 2,304 2,584 1.16 1.43 1.50 24.15 Muskegon : 50 30 2,660 2,764 0.88 1.36 1.45 24.51 West Central : 51 26 7 2,428 2,644 2,591 0.92 1.29 1.36 25.37 23.84 2.88 : Alma : 50 27 2,495 2,812 0.65 1.02 1.16 26.65 Big Rapids : 48 27 2,302 2,670 0.73 1.06 1.23 30.55 Central : 50 26 8 2,403 2,724 2,679 0.60 0.95 1.07 25.71 23.98 2.49 : Bad Axe : 50 28 2,345 2,706 0.46 0.59 0.68 21.30 Pigeon : 50 28 2,317 2,612 0.39 0.43 0.54 22.57 Saginaw : 51 30 2,582 2,903 0.27 0.42 0.55 21.74 Standish : 50 26 2,279 2,558 0.50 0.70 0.77 22.92 East Central : 51 26 7 2,339 2,721 2,699 0.44 0.59 0.71 23.08 21.43 2.23 : Fennville : 51 27 2,537 2,795 1.33 1.59 1.62 30.60 Grand Rapids : 50 28 2,817 3,133 0.90 1.20 1.34 31.70 Holland : 51 30 2,941 3,175 1.36 1.52 1.59 44.55 South Bend, IN : 52 27 2,987 3,273 0.88 1.15 1.36 29.28 Watervliet : 52 27 2,753 2,992 0.90 1.21 1.28 27.63 Southwest : 55 27 5 2,767 3,018 2,969 0.91 1.20 1.30 29.13 25.23 2.79 : Belding : 51 26 2,464 2,772 0.65 0.90 1.04 27.41 Coldwater : 52 26 2,858 3,034 0.45 0.58 0.61 22.75 Lansing : 52 28 2,665 3,000 0.49 0.91 0.99 30.04 South Central : 55 25 7 2,610 2,937 2,912 0.58 0.88 1.11 27.06 23.76 2.32 : Detroit : 51 30 3,076 3,334 0.40 0.58 0.63 23.82 Flint : 51 26 2,614 3,040 0.34 0.46 0.57 27.24 Romeo : 50 29 2,631 2,880 0.58 0.88 0.88 24.10 Tipton : 50 25 2,734 3,032 0.58 1.26 1.30 26.21 Toledo, OH : 57 27 3,075 3,327 0.47 0.68 0.78 25.47 Southeast : 57 23 6 2,750 3,098 2,904 0.42 0.66 0.76 23.50 22.83 2.44 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 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.