new-eng-crop-weather State NEW ENGLAND WEEKLY CROP WEATHER Week ending date 06/01/03 Issue NH-CW2203 Volume 23, Number 6 (issued weekly on the Internet, May - October) June 2, 2003 - 4 pm -- Agricultural Summary -- WET WEATHER CONTINUES For the week ending June 1, 2003, there were 3.7 days available for field work across New England. Topsoil moisture was rated 0% very short, 1% short, 63% adequate, 36% surplus. Subsoil moisture was rated 0% very short, 9% short, 72% adequate, 19% surplus. Pasture condition was rated as 0% very poor, 3% poor, 12% fair, 64% good, 21% excellent. Below average temperatures and rain continued throughout most of the week. New England awaits sunny, warm weather to aid crop growth, boost sales and allow field activities to continue. Major farm activities included: planting vegetables, sweet corn, field corn, potatoes and small grains; transplanting shade tobacco; spreading manure; applying fertilizer, herbicides and fungicides. SOIL MOISTURE ACROSS NEW ENGLAND ----------------------------------------------- Soil Rating This Week Last Week Last Year ----------------------------------------------- -- Percent -- Topsoil Moisture Very Short 0 2 3 Short 1 3 12 Adequate 63 71 64 Surplus 36 24 21 Subsoil Moisture Very Short 0 3 0 Short 9 4 27 Adequate 72 77 64 Surplus 19 16 9 ----------------------------------------------- -- Field Crops Report -- Rain and field conditions again prevented farmers from accomplishing much this week. Some growers tried to mud in some corn. Corn that had emerged was short and sickly yellow in color. Grass harvest was way behind due to wet fields and no heat to wilt haylage. Field corn planting continued as weather permitted and manure applications to hay were made to fields. Potato planting in Massachusetts and Rhode Island was close to wrapping up and right on schedule by week's end, with emergence well underway. Maine potato farmers were catching up on planting. Shade tobacco growers had completed 85 percent of transplanting by the end of the week. Broadleaf tobacco growers were getting underway with 10 percent of transplanting complete. -- Fruit, Vegetable, and Specialty Crops Report -- FRUIT: Wet weather during peak blossom for apples and strawberries may impact pollination. Strawberry farmers were keeping their fingers crossed and wondering if the crop will be ready by July 4th. Orchardists and small fruit producers were applying fungicides to reduce the pressure of fruit diseases. Late varieties of cranberries were just turning green and the buds on early varieties and hybrids were starting to swell. Several growers applied Avaunt for control of cranberry weevil. A number of beds had near threshold levels of black-headed fireworm. VEGETABLES: Pumpkin, squash and tomato planting continued last week. Sweet corn under plastic was thriving. Too much rain over the weekend was hurting bedding plants. Farm sales continued to suffer as rain and cool weather discouraged gardening. Saturday, however, did bring out market gardeners, as summer weather made a brief appearance. Farmers continued to harvest asparagus, greens and rhubarb. Sweet corn fields reached 30 percent emergence last week. -- Crop Progress Tables -- FIELD CROP PROGRESS ACROSS NEW ENGLAND ------------------------------------------------------- Crop 2003 2002 5-yr Avg %Emerged Condition ------------------------------------------------------- -- % Planted -- Barley, ME 85 90 95 20 Fair Oats, ME 85 90 95 20 Fair Potatoes Maine 85 85 90 -- Fair Mass 95 95 95 40 Good Rhode Isl 100 100 99 35 Good/Excel Silage Corn 55 65 75 25 Good/Fair Sweet Corn 55 60 65 30 Fair/Good Tobacco Shade 85 50 75 -- Good/Fair Broadleaf 10 30 35 -- Good/Fair -- % Harvested -- Dry Hay First Cut 5 15 20 -- Good/Fair --------------------------------------------------------- FRUIT CROP DEVELOPMENT ACROSS NEW ENGLAND ---------------------------------------------------------- Crop Stage Fruit Set Size Condition ---------------------------------------------------------- Apples FB/Petal Fall Avg/A.Avg Good/Fair Peaches Petal Fall Avg/B.Avg Good/Fair Pears Petal Fall Avg Good/Fair Blueberries Highbush EB/Petal Fall A.Avg/Avg Fair/Good Wild, ME FB Avg Fair Cranberries,MA Bud -- Good/Fair Strawberries EB/Petal Fall Avg/B.Avg Good/Fair ---------------------------------------------------------- * FB = Full Bloom, EB = Early Bloom -- Weather Summary -- For the week ending Sunday, June 1, 2003 ---------------------------------------------- AIR TEMPERATURES PRECIPITATION STATE LO HI AVG DFN LO HI ---- --- --- --- --- ---- ---- ME 34 79 56 -1 0.00 1.86 NH 33 77 56 -3 0.90 4.11 VT 42 76 58 -1 0.13 2.29 MA 45 79 58 -3 0.64 3.55 RI 46 77 57 -4 1.71 3.28 CT 46 81 60 -3 3.19 4.91 ---------------------------------------------- Copyright 2003: AWIS, Inc. All Rights Reserved. -- Weather Information Table -- Weather Summary For New England Agricultural Statistics Service Prepared By AWIS, Inc. For the Period: Monday May 26, 2003 To: Sunday June 1, 2003 AIR CUM SINCE MAR 1 TEMPERATURE GROWING DEGREE DAYS ----------- BASE-50F BASE-60F STATION LO HI AVG DFN TOT DFN TOT DFN ------- -- -- -- -- --- ---- --- ---- MAINE Albion 44 73 56 -4 135 -79 9 -16 Allagash 34 79 54 -2 68 -17 4 +4 Augusta_State_A 47 72 58 -2 170 -20 24 +4 Bangor_Intl_Arp 45 72 57 +0 168 +20 22 +11 Barnard 39 70 56 -1 122 +8 12 +5 Bath 45 71 56 -3 109 -33 2 -7 Bethel 44 73 56 -3 134 -26 12 -2 Brassua_Dam 36 69 54 +1 78 +10 8 +8 Brunswick_ME 43 70 56 -3 143 +1 13 +4 Caribou_Municip 41 75 57 +2 120 +9 21 +13 Corinna 47 74 58 +0 143 -7 13 +1 Danforth 40 77 57 +0 98 -19 9 +2 Dover-Foxcroft 40 66 53 -4 85 -29 6 -1 Durham 40 66 52 -9 66 -130 1 -17 East_Hiram 46 73 56 -3 126 -34 8 -6 Eustis 40 67 53 -2 71 -4 4 +4 Frenchville 44 77 56 +2 117 +32 29 +29 Gray 47 71 58 +1 179 +42 30 +25 Greenville_ME 45 66 55 -2 114 -11 18 +8 Guilford 40 70 53 -4 64 -50 1 -6 Hollis 45 73 58 +1 145 +13 11 +6 Houlton 39 70 57 +2 133 +20 16 +7 Kennebunkport 45 70 56 -5 139 -89 11 -12 Livermore_Falls 45 74 57 +2 136 +21 13 +6 Moosehead 37 67 53 +0 75 +7 7 +7 New_Sharon 44 72 57 +1 136 +21 17 +10 Patten 44 70 56 +0 121 +8 17 +8 Portage 44 74 57 +3 129 +18 23 +15 Portland_ME 47 70 57 -1 164 +27 19 +14 Rangeley 42 70 54 +0 67 -4 4 +4 Sebec_Lake 39 72 56 +0 107 -18 8 -2 Vanceboro 42 68 56 -1 103 +0 11 +9 Waterville 47 73 57 -4 134 -80 8 -17 NEW_HAMPSHIRE Barnstead 47 76 57 -3 180 -30 21 -8 Benton 47 70 56 -3 152 -28 15 -7 Berlin_AG 47 70 56 -2 154 -4 19 +1 Bethlehem 45 72 56 -3 137 -41 9 -13 Concord 47 76 58 -2 235 +25 36 +7 Diamond_Pond 43 65 51 -2 70 -1 5 +5 First_Conn_Lake 42 69 55 +2 78 +7 5 +5 Greenville 40 76 54 -5 123 -71 6 -18 Keene_AP 48 75 59 -4 232 -49 24 -29 Lakeport 48 74 59 +0 202 +22 26 +4 Marlow 46 70 55 -7 100 -141 1 -38 Mount_Washingto 33 48 39 -1 3 +3 0 +0 North_Conway 45 71 56 -4 177 -7 19 -4 Otter_Brook_Lk 42 76 58 -5 174 -107 9 -44 Plymouth 47 74 57 -1 125 -20 9 -5 Rochester 48 72 57 -4 175 -67 21 -18 Weare 46 72 57 -5 192 -49 15 -24 VERMONT Ball_Mt_Lake 47 74 57 -2 134 -46 5 -17 Bethel 47 75 60 +3 204 +44 14 -4 Burlington_Intl 50 72 60 +0 305 +49 40 -8 East_Haven 46 70 57 +2 152 +40 10 +0 Island_Pond 47 71 56 +1 146 +32 12 +2 Montpelier 47 69 57 -2 172 -3 16 -5 Morrisville_AG 47 71 57 +0 172 +12 9 -9 Mount_Mansfield 42 63 48 -3 28 -8 1 +1 Northfield 47 71 59 +3 164 +26 7 -7 Pownal 48 71 58 -1 196 +10 11 -14 Rochester 48 71 58 +1 160 +0 9 -9 Rutland_AG 48 71 58 -4 194 -101 18 -45 Sunderland 47 70 57 -5 167 -110 11 -41 Sutton 46 68 55 +0 145 +33 9 -1 Townshend_Lake 49 75 58 -3 174 -62 13 -27 Union_Vill_Dam 49 73 58 -3 165 -81 13 -30 MASSACHUSETTS Ashburnham 47 75 57 -2 206 +34 20 +4 Boston/Logan_In 47 75 59 -5 299 -10 58 +17 Greenfield 49 78 60 -4 270 -42 33 -22 New_Bedford 46 75 58 -5 213 -96 11 -29 Otis_AFB 46 75 57 -2 191 +11 14 +1 Plymouth 46 74 57 -4 216 +17 19 +1 Walpole 45 77 58 -4 268 +24 42 +10 West_Medway 46 79 58 -3 269 +25 37 +5 Chicopee/Westov 50 77 59 -6 302 -99 40 -45 Worcester 45 75 57 -3 251 +38 33 +9 Worthington 47 74 57 -2 168 -13 9 -12 RHODE_ISLAND Providence 47 76 59 -3 287 +13 34 +0 Woonsocket 46 77 58 -4 237 -3 23 -2 CONNECTICUT Bakersville 48 75 59 -6 209 -169 15 -67 Bridgeport/Siko 49 76 60 -3 286 -38 33 -29 Hartford/Bradle 50 78 61 -4 362 -9 59 -20 Norfolk 48 70 57 -2 181 +4 7 -11 Norwich 48 81 60 -3 277 -49 33 -27 Thomaston_Dam 46 76 61 -1 294 +34 36 -4 Willimantic 48 78 59 -3 280 +19 30 -9 1-WEEK PRECIP 4-WEEK CUM PRECIP ------------- ----------------- TOTAL TOTAL STATION INCHES DFN DAYS INCHES DFN DAYS ------- ----- ---- --- ----- ---- --- MAINE Albion 1.58 +0.74 4 3.43 +0.07 13 Allagash 0.60 -0.10 3 1.95 -0.88 12 Augusta_State_A 0.97 +0.13 5 2.44 -0.98 13 Bangor_Intl_Arp 1.03 +0.25 4 2.56 -0.68 9 Barnard 0.68 -0.16 6 2.11 -1.15 14 Bath 1.34 +0.50 4 3.47 +0.14 14 Bethel 0.96 +0.10 6 2.31 -1.02 14 Brassua_Dam 0.93 +0.10 6 2.25 -0.89 13 Brunswick_ME 0.68 -0.16 5 3.02 -0.31 16 Caribou_Municip 1.05 +0.35 4 2.24 -0.56 13 Corinna 1.86 +1.02 4 3.63 +0.41 11 Danforth 0.78 -0.07 5 2.12 -1.25 12 Dover-Foxcroft 0.65 -0.19 5 1.82 -1.44 12 Durham 1.41 +0.57 5 2.90 -0.38 15 East_Hiram 1.55 +0.69 6 3.45 +0.03 16 Eustis 1.13 +0.36 7 2.88 -0.11 15 Frenchville 0.26 -0.44 3 0.87 -1.96 7 Gray 1.52 +0.75 3 2.93 -0.28 11 Greenville_ME 0.94 +0.10 3 1.36 -1.90 5 Guilford 0.78 -0.06 7 2.18 -1.08 15 Hollis 1.79 +0.95 6 3.43 +0.03 18 Houlton 0.90 +0.13 5 2.35 -0.70 13 Kennebunkport 1.63 +0.77 6 4.46 +0.95 18 Livermore_Falls 0.87 -0.03 5 2.12 -1.30 12 Moosehead 0.96 +0.13 6 1.91 -1.23 14 New_Sharon 1.06 +0.16 5 2.55 -0.87 14 Patten 0.45 -0.32 6 1.90 -1.15 16 Portage 0.91 +0.21 4 2.65 -0.15 16 Portland_ME 1.48 +0.71 7 3.24 +0.03 17 Rangeley 1.01 +0.20 7 2.79 -0.19 16 Sebec_Lake 0.88 +0.04 5 2.29 -0.97 13 Vanceboro 0.85 +0.08 5 2.15 -1.11 11 Waterville 0.88 +0.04 7 2.36 -1.00 17 NEW_HAMPSHIRE Barnstead 1.77 +1.03 6 3.85 +1.01 18 Benton 1.84 +1.00 7 3.23 +0.09 16 Berlin_AG 0.90 +0.02 6 2.27 -0.99 12 Bethlehem 1.74 +0.91 6 3.90 +0.87 17 Concord 1.76 +1.02 5 3.99 +1.15 15 Diamond_Pond 1.44 +0.46 7 3.16 -0.47 19 First_Conn_Lake 1.29 +0.31 6 2.89 -0.74 15 Greenville 3.46 +2.56 4 5.56 +2.14 13 Keene_AP 2.86 +1.98 7 4.18 +0.75 15 Lakeport 1.37 +0.53 5 3.29 +0.02 15 Marlow 1.87 +0.96 7 3.56 -0.11 17 Mount_Washingto 2.69 +0.96 7 5.33 -1.44 17 North_Conway 1.45 +0.54 7 3.02 -0.61 17 Otter_Brook_Lk 4.11 +3.23 7 6.17 +2.74 17 Plymouth 2.01 +1.10 7 3.96 +0.33 16 Rochester 1.94 +1.10 5 4.13 +0.65 15 Weare 2.61 +1.70 5 5.05 +1.38 15 VERMONT Ball_Mt_Lake 1.94 +0.89 7 4.14 +0.00 19 Bethel 0.92 -0.05 5 2.64 -1.27 15 Burlington_Intl 0.67 -0.08 5 2.87 +0.02 11 East_Haven 0.93 +0.02 7 3.38 +0.05 20 Island_Pond 0.87 -0.06 6 2.77 -0.64 15 Montpelier 0.83 +0.03 4 1.15 -1.85 8 Morrisville_AG 0.63 -0.25 6 2.07 -1.23 15 Mount_Mansfield 2.29 +0.92 7 4.92 -0.15 16 Northfield 1.14 +0.37 5 2.59 -0.57 13 Pownal 1.85 +0.80 4 4.58 +0.44 15 Rochester 1.72 +0.75 7 3.87 -0.04 15 Rutland_AG 1.73 +0.90 6 4.11 +0.92 16 Sunderland 2.16 +1.32 7 4.70 +1.45 17 Sutton 1.77 +0.86 7 3.82 +0.49 17 Townshend_Lake 1.85 +1.08 6 3.90 +0.69 17 Union_Vill_Dam 1.25 +0.45 6 3.99 +0.76 19 MASSACHUSETTS Ashburnham 2.32 +1.49 5 4.20 +1.00 14 Boston/Logan_In 2.96 +2.25 5 4.08 +1.17 15 Greenfield 1.91 +1.00 6 3.83 +0.31 17 New_Bedford 1.57 +0.73 2 2.96 -0.36 13 Otis_AFB 1.17 +0.37 2 2.96 -0.36 11 Plymouth 1.56 +0.72 2 3.07 -0.47 14 Walpole 3.14 +2.36 6 4.20 +1.09 17 West_Medway 3.55 +2.77 3 4.56 +1.45 13 Chicopee/Westov 2.19 +1.21 6 3.76 +0.03 17 Worcester 2.54 +1.57 6 4.07 +0.16 17 Worthington 2.45 +1.46 5 4.76 +0.62 14 RHODE_ISLAND Providence 2.06 +1.25 4 3.32 -0.04 14 Woonsocket 3.28 +2.37 5 4.38 +0.72 16 CONNECTICUT Bakersville 3.61 +2.70 5 5.05 +1.32 15 Bridgeport/Siko 4.25 +3.41 6 6.03 +2.50 16 Hartford/Bradle 3.48 +2.57 5 4.97 +1.24 14 Norfolk 4.19 +3.14 4 5.69 +1.55 14 Norwich 4.04 +3.14 3 4.97 +0.99 13 Thomaston_Dam 4.91 +3.93 6 6.49 +2.49 17 Willimantic 3.52 +2.61 7 4.64 +0.87 17 Summary based on NWS data. DFN = Departure From Normal (Using 1961-90 Normals Period). Precipitation (rain or melted snow/ice) in inches. Precipitation Days = Days with precip of 0.01 inch or more. Air Temperatures in Degrees Fahrenheit. Copyright 2003: AWIS, Inc. All Rights Reserved. For detailed ag weather forecasts and data visit the AWIS home page at www.awis.com or call toll free at 1-888-798-9955. -- Other Agricultural Comments and News -- CONNECTICUT -Howard Rood (FSA), Fairfield/Litchfield: Weather has been very cool and wet. Corn that has emerged is yellow. We need some warm days. Ross Eddy (FSA), Hartford/Tolland: Wet and cool weather prevailed for most of the week. Setting of shade tobacco nearly complete but broadleaf growers are waiting for soil to warm up. Sweet corn and field corn showing a lot of yellow at two leaf stage. Some setting of tomato plants and plantings of summer squash are in the ground. Too much rain on the weekends is hurting bedding plant sales. Marsha Jette (FSA), New London: Unusually cold, wet weather is causing concern as crops cannot be planted nor hay harvested. Hoping for sun this week. Dawn Pindell (FSA), Windham: Cold, wet, weary weather. Still trying to get corn planted and harvesting haylage. No consistent sun, no hay to date. Planting pumpkins and cut flower seedlings. Bedding plant sales hurt with wet weekends. Fruit trees gearing up for good production. Nancy Welsh/Karen Lockman (FSA), New Haven: Weather pattern still cool and rainy. Plant sales are not doing well, no one is thinking about gardening. Corn is up, for those who got it in early enough. Hay is being cut though it is wet, producers can't wait. Richard Meinert (Ext), CT Cooperative: Rain and field conditions again prevented farmers from accomplishing a lot this week. Some growers tried to mud in some corn. Grass harvest is way behind due to wet fields and no heat to wilt haylage. Emerged corn is short and sickly yellow in color in a lot of fields. MAINE - Marvin Hedstrom, Northern Aroostook: Potatoes and small grains: Many growers have completed planting. Those who have not would need only two or three good days to finish. However, showers during the last part of the week curtailed any field activity. Small grains are emerging rapidly due to moist weather and warm temperatures. Pam Hickey (Ext), Central Aroostook: Farmers are still trying to finish up planting crops. The recent rain has slowed progress. Hopefully, by the end of the week, all crops should be in the ground. Steve London (Ext), Southern Aroostook: Potatoes and small grains: Things are going well. We need sunshine. Albert Dow (NRCS), Piscataquis: Cattle are grazing, though growth of forage has been slow. Potatoes are nearly all planted. Corn is being planted. Donna Lamb (Ext), Piscataquis: Cool wet weather has delayed a lot of farm activities. Hay farmers are applying fertilizer to hay fields. Rick Kersbergen (Ext), Waldo: Wet weather has slowed field work and crop progress. Cold soils have slowed germination. Wet weather during peak blossom for apples and strawberries may impact pollination. Trudy Soucy (FSA), Knox/Lincoln: Silage corn planted. Row crops being planted. Another week of cool, overcast weather could mean pollination problems in blueberry fields. Sweet corn is up. Saturday was a good day for bees, farmers and market gardeners with summer weather. Dr. David Yarborough (Ext), Washington: Wild blueberries: Cold wet weather delaying bloom and reducing pollination. Little insect activity because of cool conditions. Michael Tardy (FSA), Androscoggin: What a lousy week. It's been cold and wet most of the week. A few rays of sunshine have allowed the producers to farm around the edges. When weather allowed, the tractors were tearing up the fields, of course in a Conservation-like manner. Producers have made a good dent in the number of acres that they want planted to corn. The potato growers are just about done. Apple growers are concerned with the wet, cold weather. The bees aren't very busy in that atmosphere. Sweet corn is thriving under the plastic, and strawberry growers are keeping their fingers crossed. Isn't farming fun! Parker Rand (FSA), Cumberland/York: Still cool and wet, most crops are very slow developing, grass is looking good and some are chopping. Strawberry growers are starting to wonder if the crop will be ready for the 4th. Laura Rand (FSA), Oxford: Wet weather continues. Most planting of crops has come to a halt due to wet ground. Daily temperatures are below normal. Producers are ready to return to planting as soon as the ground dries and the sun reappears. Wonder when that will be? MASSACHUSETTS - Paul Russell (FSA), Southeast Massachusetts: And the rain continues, wet cool weather dominated southeastern Massachusetts last week, by the time the soil dried enough to work it started to rain again. Late variety of cranberries are just turning green and the bud on early varieties and hybrids are starting to swell. Vegetables that have been transplanted planted are doing nothing and growers are concerned the crops planted from seed may have poor germination. Kip Graham (FSA), Worcester: Manure has been spread, but too wet to go in the fields to plant. Have to wear knee boots to get into fields. The rain is preventing farmers to plant. Could be a bad scab year. Need more sun to make fruit grow right. Again, too much rain! Too much rain - will wash fertilizer off and will have to reapply. Frank Caruso (Ext), Plymouth: Cranberries: Warmer temperatures got things moving a bit, especially lending to less dormant red color in the later cultivars. Several growers have applied Avaunt for control of cranberry weevil. Several beds have near threshold levels of black-headed fireworm. No frost nights. More than 2 inches of rain fell in most of the area on Sunday. Vines look very good so far. David Rose (FSA), Bristol: More cold weather and rain has kept field work to a minimum. John Devine (FSA), Franklin: Another week of unsettled and cool weather has delayed planting and harvesting operations. Cool season crops and grasses look great although many hay fields have lodged. Fruit growers are concerned pollination rates may be lower than normal. Paul Fischer (FSA), Essex/Middlesex: Several days of below normal temperatures and what seems like constant rain has significantly delayed field work. Farmers are running approximately two weeks behind schedule. Ted Smiarowski, Jr./Julie Jacque (FSA), Hampshire/Hampden: The month of May was very cool and rainy. May didn't have many days in the high 70's and above. Sunshine and heat are needed for all crops. Orchardists and small fruit producers are applying fungicides to reduce the pressure of fruit diseases. Vegetable crops are growing very slowly due to the cool and cloudy weather. Growers are harvesting greens, asparagus, and rhubarb. Gary Guida, Worcester: Growers have been fighting weather and lousy weekend market conditions. Good retail sale day on Sat but can we get at least one nice weekend? In two days that were good this week growers were busy transplanting crops and planting more corn. Emerged corn looks excellent. NEW HAMPSHIRE - Tina Savage (Ext), Carroll: Rain, rain and more rain, more rain forecast for this week. Some dry days will be needed in order to begin first cutting, fields are very wet. Temperatures remain in the 60's and low 70's still feels like April even though the calendar says June. Carl Majewski (Ext), Cheshire: Rain every day. Many grass stands have headed out - forage quality is decreasing steadily, but farms can't get in to harvest. Alfalfa is ready to harvest. Most of the corn along the CT River is planted, still some to plant in wetter soils. Much of planted corn has emerged - spike stage. Wet weather continues to delay operations on fruit and vegetable operations, and greenhouses are noticing a drop in business. Steve Turaj (Ext), Coos: Somewhat wet field conditions delay haylage harvest as orchard grass heads out alfalfa at bud stage. Nearly all corn now planted, in later than usual generally. Spring vegetables in and could use some sun to get growing, also to get the honeybees working. Apples now at blossom stage. Black flies have certainly arrived. Tom Buob (Ext), Grafton: Rain and showers all week delayed the beginning of first cutting. A few small areas got started but the real push will be this coming week, as weather looks more promising. Corn planting finishing up and most corn has emerged. Grasses heading out slowly due to cooler than normal weather. Alfalfa in late vegetative to bud stage. Steve Schmidt (FSA), Grafton: For the month of May, weather conditions were cool, with light showers. We received a total of 2.85 inches of rain for the month at our Woodsville location. Top soil moisture is adequate. Grass is growing well. Persistent rain showers since the 24th of May have delivered a total of 1.23 inches of rain, and frustrated farmers. First cut is ready, now we need the weather to dry hay. Corn is mostly planted. Early planted corn is up about 6"-8". A couple of apple growers felt that pollination could be down due to the showery weather of the past few days, but acknowledged it only takes one good day for adequate pollination. George Hamilton (Ext), Hillsborough: Weather: Rain was on and off for most of the week along with windy conditions on Sunday. Fruits: With all the rain during week, orchardists making sure to have protective fungicide sprays applied. Moved bees out of orchards. Blueberries and strawberries are blooming. See some winter injury on raspberries and blueberries. Mowing orchards. Vegetables: Harvesting asparagus, rhubarb and some spinach. With the rain during week, it was very difficult to do any field work, including making successive plantings of sweet corn and trying to finish potato planting. Planting tomato transplants. Field Crops: Difficult to plant and weed spray corn fields with rainy conditions. Some farmers are starting to make haylage, difficult to do because of wet weather. David Seavey (Ext), Merrimack: Hayland and pasture seedings continue. Highbush blueberries fertilized. Vegetables planted under row covers. Nurseries still planting trees and shrubs. Orchardists are finding difficulty in timing sprays with block of trees in different stages of development. Extended periods of wet weather has set the stage for fireblight and apple scab concerns. Some orchards sprayed for plum curculio. Pre-emergence weed control sprays on vegetables. Highbush blueberries in full bloom. Corn is out of the ground but is off color due to cloudy weather and cold, wet soils. Lush grass growth. Haylage cutting is limited due to lack of sunlight. Concerns for leaching of pre-emergence herbicides. Nada Haddad (Ext), Rockingham: Making successive vegetable plantings between rain. Cultivating vegetable fields. Monitoring pests in apple and tree fruits orchards and small fruits. Plant growth slow due to cool and wet weather. Hay about ready for harvest. Pam Marvin (FSA), Sullivan: More rain this past week has put hay and haylage cutting a little behind and also the last of the corn to be planted. First cut of haylage and alfalfa look really good. Strawberries, apples, peaches and pears are progressing nicely. Geoffrey Njue (Ext), Strafford: Rain showers and little sunshine through the week. Pastures and hay fields growing well. Fruit growers spraying protective fungicide sprays, and monitoring for both disease and insect pests. Vegetable growers start to plant warm season crops. Greenhouses and nurseries picking up in their plant sales. RHODE ISLAND - Karen Menezes (Ext), Newport: A cloudy, cool week. Field work for crops continued, herbicide being applied on potatoes, sweet corn and field corn being planted and summer crops going in. Some of the more tender vegetables are still not being planted. Roadside stands are busy hoping to catch up on some of the lost business from a rainy Memorial Day. VERMONT - John St. Onge/Kim Peterson (FSA), Lamoille: Not a very good week for doing fieldwork. Some progress was made on finishing up corn planting and there were a few opportunities for herbicide spraying. First cut of grass is delayed and hopefully will catch up this week. Vegetable transplants and seedings are about on schedule and what's in the ground is doing fine. Dave Blodgett (NRCS), Orleans: Almost all corn has been planted. A few landowners have started first cut haying. Most fields are wet and farmers are making tracks. Hay crop appears to be heavy. A few days of sun would be good to start to dry things out. Lynette Hamilton/Perley Sparrow (FSA), Windham: The cool wet weather has slowed up the vegetable crops, but for transplanting the extra water has saved on irrigating. Hay producers say it is time to get started but need warmer weather and more sunshine. Apple producers are reporting a good set of fruit and blueberries and strawberries will be in full bloom this week. Corn is up but not growing very fast, needs hotter temperatures. Jeff Carter (Ext), Addison: Very little ground scratched up this week, very wet. Corn in spike stage, weed control spraying activity between showers. A few windrows laid down at end of week, no chopping yet. New seedings look good. Dennis Kauppila (Ext), Caledonia: Damp cool week. But not a lot of rain. Grass really grew even with little sun. Some corn has emerged, I would think with sun and warmer temperatures for a few days this week, the season will really progress. People trying to get outside, but weather did not allow it. Monday's sun will see lots of tractors and people in motion. Sherwin Williams, Rutland: Very good cutting of asparagus. Spraying early sweet corn for weed control. Dairy farmers planting corn. Mid-season sweet corn planted, second planting of beans. Some hay ready to cut when weather changes. 0.687 in. rainfall. Cloudy, damp week. Not much rain, early corn came up good but needs sun to color it up. Peas coming along great. Vegetables slow without sun. Asparagus still cutting good. Hope sun will come back soon. Chris Benedict (Ext), Chittenden: Cool, and very wet weather sums this previous week. Prior to the onslaught of wet weather we had reached full bloom, early last week. Petals have begun to fall. The cooler weather this previous week has slowed arthropod development, but disease concerns are still heightened. Heather Darby (Ext), Franklin: Rain rain go away..... Scattered showers most of the week. Delayed some field work, however, farmers were trying to work fields and plant corn in between pesky rain showers. Corn is starting to emerge and most is at spike stage. Very little hay was mowed and conditions poor for drying. Very wet haylage going into storage. MAY 2003 CROP WEATHER SUMMARY: Unseasonably cool temperatures dominated the month of May, causing planting schedules in New England to fall behind by as much as three weeks. Low soil temperatures early in the month stunted germination of crops already in the ground. The below average temperatures also raised the threat of frost, causing farmers to irrigate to protect certain crops. Similar to last year, hay growers were optimistic about this year's crop due to the fact that cool, wet conditions in spring provide optimal growing conditions. Potato planting progress was close to the five-year average as of May 27 in Massachusetts and Rhode Island. Maine potato planting progress was below the five-year average by twenty percent on the same date, as growers were forced to wait out the lingering cool conditions. Shade tobacco transplanting reached 45 percent complete by the end of the month, as broadleaf growers prepared to set out seedlings. Field and sweet corn plantings were behind normal schedules, as neither had reached the halfway mark by month's end. Most tree fruit crops had reached petal fall stage and were rated in good to fair condition. Spring weather conditions were not optimal for pollination this year; bee populations in the area had suffered from a harsh winter. Maine wild blueberry growers kept active during the month as they pruned and applied fungicides and herbicides to fields. Cranberries in Massachusetts were in bud stage by month's end, and growers kept watch for fungus and insects. -- Contact Information -- To receive this report every Monday evening, send an e-mail message to listserv@newsbox.usda.gov and in the body, type subscribe usda-new-eng-crop-weather Statisticians: Angie Considine, Robin Helrich Stat Assistant: Wayne Colpitt Deputy Director: Joe Sampson New England Agricultural Statistics Service National Agricultural Statistics Service United States Department of Agriculture Aubrey R. Davis, Director 22 Bridge St, 3rd Floor PO Box 1444 Concord, NH 03302-1444 Phone: (603) 224-9639 Fax: (603) 225-1434 Internet: http://www.usda.gov/nass/ E-Mail: nass.nh@nass.usda.gov ****************** end of report ***********************