State NEW ENGLAND WEEKLY CROP WEATHER Week ending date 07/11/04 Issue NH-CW2804 Volume 24, Number 12 (issued weekly on the Internet, May - October) July 12, 2004 - 4 pm -- Agricultural Summary RAIN VARIABLE ACROSS NEW ENGLAND For the week ending July 11, 2004, there were 5.3 days available for field work across New England. Topsoil moisture was rated four percent very short, 14 percent short, 77 percent adequate, five percent surplus. Subsoil moisture was rated three percent very short, 20 percent short, 74 percent adequate, three percent surplus. Pasture condition was rated one percent very poor, six percent poor, 19 percent fair, 60 percent good, 14 percent excellent. Rain in the northern New England States limited days suitable for fieldwork, but improved crop conditions. Dry weather continued in the southern States permitting fieldwork most days, but crop conditions declined from the lack of rain. Isolated thunderstorms brought heavy rainfall to some areas. Major farm activities included: cutting haylage, making dry hay; harvesting early sweet corn; spreading manure; mowing; cultivating; hilling potatoes; irrigating; monitoring fields; applying herbicides, insecticides, and fungicides. SOIL MOISTURE ACROSS NEW ENGLAND --------------------------------------------- -- Percent -- Soil Rating This Week Last Week Last Year --------------------------------------------- Topsoil Moisture Very Short 4 4 9 Short 14 14 25 Adequate 77 78 62 Surplus 5 4 4 Subsoil Moisture Very Short 3 4 9 Short 20 14 23 Adequate 74 78 67 Surplus 3 4 1 --------------------------------------------- -- Field Crops Report Farmers continued to bale hay or make haylage during the week as weather permitted; localized shower activity made haying difficult at many locations. Second cut hay harvest has begun, with crop condition rated good to excellent by week's end. Crop specialists report generally good hay quality but yields lower than expected. Corn silage growth made good gains where there was heat and sunshine. Maine potato growers active finishing up final hilling. Most crops were in good to excellent condition as of mid July in the six state region. -- Fruit, Vegetable, and Specialty Crops Report FRUIT: Orchardists monitored tree blocks and sprayed as necessary. Maine wild blueberries continue to mature slowly due to prolonged cool, wet conditions. Excellent cranberry pollinating conditions prevailed during the week in Massachusetts, with fruit set rated mostly average statewide. Strawberry harvest neared completion in all states except Maine by the end of the week, and operators were busy renovating beds. Highbush blueberries and raspberries were available at PYO and farmer's markets. VEGETABLES: Early sweet corn harvest was just getting underway in southern New England, with less than five percent picked by July 11, 2004. Vegetable growers harvested beets, beans, greenhouse tomatoes, cabbage, summer squash, peas, spinach, lettuce and radishes between showers. -- Crop Progress Tables FIELD CROP PROGRESS ACROSS NEW ENGLAND ---------------------------------------------------- Crop 2004 2003 5-yr Avg Condition ---------------------------------------------------- -- Percent Emerged -- Silage Corn 99 90 95 Good/Fair Sweet Corn 99 95 95 Good/Excel -- Percent Harvested -- Barley, ME -- -- -- Good/Excel Oats, ME -- -- -- Good/Excel Potatoes: Maine -- -- -- Good/Excel Mass -- -- -- Good Rhode Isl -- -- -- Good/Excel Silage Corn -- -- -- Good Sweet Corn -- -- -- Good/Excel Tobacco: Shade 5 -- -- Good Broadleaf -- -- -- Good/Fair Dry Hay: First Cut 85 80 85 Good/Fair Second Cut 15 10 20 Good ----------------------------------------------------- FRUIT CROP DEVELOPMENT ACROSS NEW ENGLAND ----------------------------------------------------- -- Percent Harvested -- Crop 2004 2003 5-yr Avg Condition ----------------------------------------------------- Apples -- -- -- Good/Fair Peaches -- -- -- Fair/Good Pears -- -- -- Good/Fair Blueberries Highbush -- 5 5 Fair/Good Wild -- -- -- Fair/Poor Cranberries,MA -- -- -- Good/Fair Strawberries 90 85 85 Good/Fair ----------------------------------------------------- -- Weather Summary For the week ending Sunday, July 11, 2004 ---------------------------------------------- AIR TEMPERATURES PRECIPITATION STATE LO HI AVG DFN LO HI ---- --- --- --- --- ---- ---- ME 41 87 63 -4 0.00 3.48 NH 39 88 66 -1 0.63 3.47 VT 43 91 67 -1 0.15 3.55 MA 49 87 70 +0 0.03 2.34 RI 56 86 71 +0 0.36 1.58 CT 52 90 70 -1 0.19 1.45 ---------------------------------------------- Copyright 2004: AWIS, Inc. All Rights Reserved. -- Weather Information Table Weather Summary For New England Agricultural Statistics Service - Prepared By AWIS, Inc. For the Period: Monday July 05, 2004 To: Sunday July 11, 2004 AIR CUM SINCE MAR 1 TEMPERATURE GROWING DEGREE DAYS ----------- BASE-50F BASE-60F STATION LO HI AVG DFN TOT DFN TOT DFN ------- -- -- -- -- --- ---- --- ---- MAINE Albion 50 80 64 -6 636 -236 145 -131 Allagash 42 80 60 -6 369 -178 43 -61 Augusta_State_A 56 79 65 -5 746 -77 206 -45 Bangor_Intl_Arp 50 80 64 -4 680 -50 177 -20 Barnard 49 79 63 -4 551 -70 111 -30 Bath 52 80 65 -4 609 -122 146 -55 Bethel 51 85 65 -4 712 -34 184 -19 Brassua_Dam 44 81 61 -4 427 -69 51 -38 Brunswick_ME 53 77 65 -4 754 +23 207 +6 Caribou_Municip 45 76 63 -4 485 -111 97 -33 Corinna 51 80 64 -4 651 -67 161 -26 Danforth 48 78 62 -6 480 -198 71 -106 Dover-Foxcroft 45 81 62 -5 485 -136 92 -49 Durham 54 80 65 -6 662 -212 172 -116 East_Hiram 50 80 65 -4 660 -84 168 -34 Eustis 45 77 61 -4 430 -65 63 -16 Frenchville 46 76 61 -4 423 -124 67 -37 Gray 56 79 66 -3 797 +84 236 +50 Greenville_ME 53 80 65 -3 702 +70 188 +44 Guilford 46 79 61 -7 411 -210 59 -82 Hollis 54 80 66 -2 707 +15 197 +23 Houlton 41 78 62 -5 486 -128 104 -35 Kennebunkport 55 77 65 -7 587 -342 127 -189 Livermore_Falls 48 87 66 +0 711 +90 203 +66 Moosehead 44 80 60 -4 436 -60 58 -31 New_Sharon 50 80 64 -2 628 +7 131 -6 Patten 47 78 62 -5 464 -150 77 -62 Portage 46 79 61 -5 447 -149 75 -55 Portland_ME 56 78 66 -3 720 +7 205 +19 Rangeley 48 78 62 -2 469 +0 70 -1 Sebec_Lake 46 81 63 -4 556 -76 118 -26 Vanceboro 49 78 62 -5 487 -133 83 -58 Waterville 55 80 65 -5 667 -205 164 -112 NEW_HAMPSHIRE Barnstead 52 85 67 -3 759 -93 227 -40 Benton 49 80 64 -3 693 -20 173 +4 Berlin_AG 48 82 65 -2 701 -8 187 +8 Bethlehem 46 83 65 -2 618 -95 141 -30 Concord 53 84 70 +1 1011 +159 368 +101 Diamond_Pond 45 76 60 -4 410 -27 50 -3 First_Conn_Lake 47 81 64 +2 432 -5 68 +15 Greenville 55 88 69 +3 999 +229 355 +148 Keene_AP 46 82 68 -3 947 -40 302 -50 Lakeport 57 85 69 +1 911 +116 306 +69 Marlow 45 80 63 -7 611 -274 126 -153 Mount_Washingto 39 59 49 +2 35 +23 0 +0 North_Conway 54 84 67 -2 820 +29 261 +29 Otter_Brook_Lk 49 85 68 -4 861 -126 256 -96 Plymouth 48 83 65 -2 678 -8 165 -6 Rochester 56 80 67 -3 838 -79 274 -34 Weare 54 81 66 -3 842 -43 255 -24 VERMONT Ball_Mt_Lake 47 84 66 -1 781 +47 208 +19 Bethel 46 86 67 +2 787 +97 231 +57 Burlington_Intl 51 85 71 +0 1010 +74 383 +59 East_Haven 44 83 64 -1 628 +61 154 +33 Island_Pond 47 80 65 +2 590 +28 129 +19 Montpelier 46 82 67 +0 776 +57 229 +40 Morrisville_AG 45 91 67 +1 628 -78 163 -24 Mount_Mansfield 48 70 58 -2 284 +16 26 +7 Northfield 43 84 65 -1 693 +55 176 +24 Pownal 53 81 67 -1 849 +109 233 +38 Rochester 47 86 66 +0 765 +75 211 +37 Rutland_AG 47 86 68 -3 832 -156 231 -118 Sunderland 48 82 66 -4 764 -185 192 -129 Sutton 47 83 64 -1 607 +40 141 +20 Townshend_Lake 51 84 67 -3 862 -44 254 -48 Union_Vill_Dam 49 86 67 -4 784 -136 242 -67 MASSACHUSETTS Ashburnham 55 83 69 +2 927 +164 301 +88 Boston/Logan_In 61 83 70 -3 1150 +52 468 +49 Greenfield 53 84 69 -4 1035 -30 365 -35 New_Bedford 59 84 71 -3 1009 -72 348 -51 Otis_AFB 63 81 71 +2 936 +108 325 +70 Plymouth 57 80 71 +0 958 +79 344 +54 Walpole 57 84 71 +1 1085 +150 404 +87 West_Medway 56 87 71 +1 1101 +166 414 +97 Chicopee/Westov 55 86 71 -4 1238 +5 504 -1 Worcester 57 83 69 -1 1045 +188 378 +111 Worthington 49 84 67 +0 821 +74 232 +35 RHODE_ISLAND Providence 60 86 72 +1 1180 +149 464 +84 Woonsocket 56 84 70 +0 1067 +150 395 +100 CONNECTICUT Bakersville 53 83 67 -7 930 -262 288 -198 Bridgeport/Siko 60 85 74 +2 1255 +146 512 +78 Hartford/Bradle 56 87 72 -2 1273 +88 529 +46 Norfolk 54 84 67 +0 918 +171 294 +95 Norwich 57 88 72 +0 1170 +99 451 +56 Thomaston_Dam 52 90 70 +1 1203 +277 472 +170 Willimantic 55 84 70 +0 1129 +192 420 +112 1-WEEK PRECIP 4-WEEK CUM PRECIP ------------- ----------------- TOTAL TOTAL STATION INCHES DFN DAYS INCHES DFN DAYS ------- ----- ---- --- ----- ---- --- MAINE Albion 0.62 -0.15 4 2.91 -0.30 12 Allagash 1.10 +0.26 3 5.45 +2.33 15 Augusta_State_A 0.86 +0.16 4 2.36 -0.63 13 Bangor_Intl_Arp 0.60 -0.17 3 3.08 +0.00 12 Barnard 0.97 +0.13 4 3.54 +0.12 14 Bath 1.49 +0.79 4 3.53 +0.44 13 Bethel 1.19 +0.38 4 2.57 -0.93 13 Brassua_Dam 1.34 +0.43 3 4.00 +0.30 13 Brunswick_ME 1.81 +1.11 4 3.43 +0.34 14 Caribou_Municip 0.58 -0.29 4 4.00 +0.93 18 Corinna 0.91 +0.14 3 3.18 -0.04 9 Danforth 1.19 +0.33 4 4.68 +1.25 15 Dover-Foxcroft 0.24 -0.60 2 2.82 -0.60 12 Durham 0.80 +0.03 3 2.96 -0.36 12 East_Hiram 0.69 -0.15 3 2.08 -1.36 11 Eustis 1.63 +0.79 4 4.10 +0.85 12 Frenchville 2.34 +1.50 4 7.68 +4.56 18 Gray 0.73 +0.02 3 2.12 -0.94 12 Greenville_ME 1.61 +0.77 3 3.00 -0.42 12 Guilford 1.64 +0.80 4 3.53 +0.11 16 Hollis 0.65 -0.12 4 2.30 -0.96 14 Houlton 0.56 -0.28 4 2.99 -0.18 19 Kennebunkport 1.22 +0.52 5 2.44 -0.69 13 Livermore_Falls 1.13 +0.36 4 2.96 -0.57 13 Moosehead 1.40 +0.49 4 4.05 +0.35 15 New_Sharon 1.09 +0.32 3 2.16 -1.37 10 Patten 1.28 +0.44 5 4.25 +1.08 20 Portage 1.04 +0.17 4 5.32 +2.25 18 Portland_ME 1.59 +0.88 4 2.71 -0.35 13 Rangeley 1.74 +0.97 4 4.12 +0.80 13 Sebec_Lake 1.22 +0.38 3 3.30 -0.12 13 Vanceboro 0.98 +0.21 4 3.81 +0.81 15 Waterville 0.82 +0.05 4 2.06 -1.15 11 NEW_HAMPSHIRE Barnstead 2.11 +1.41 3 3.49 +0.59 11 Benton 3.47 +2.70 4 5.38 +2.03 15 Berlin_AG 1.80 +0.96 4 3.23 -0.41 12 Bethlehem 1.52 +0.66 4 3.79 +0.11 15 Concord 1.18 +0.48 3 2.27 -0.63 12 Diamond_Pond 2.37 +1.34 6 5.24 +0.96 15 First_Conn_Lake 1.66 +0.63 5 3.73 -0.55 15 Greenville 0.95 +0.11 1 1.70 -1.67 5 Keene_AP 0.86 +0.09 4 1.85 -1.43 10 Lakeport 0.85 +0.08 4 2.05 -1.09 10 Marlow 0.63 -0.14 4 2.07 -1.22 10 Mount_Washingto 3.47 +1.88 5 6.57 -0.33 16 North_Conway 3.24 +2.40 5 4.90 +1.35 17 Otter_Brook_Lk 1.41 +0.64 5 3.41 +0.13 13 Plymouth 1.54 +0.70 4 2.82 -0.54 12 Rochester 1.95 +1.18 2 3.11 -0.06 9 Weare 1.27 +0.50 4 2.82 -0.47 14 VERMONT Ball_Mt_Lake 1.83 +0.92 4 2.97 -1.01 13 Bethel 1.42 +0.58 5 2.92 -0.45 12 Burlington_Intl 1.44 +0.67 6 4.05 +0.78 18 East_Haven 3.55 +2.62 5 5.51 +1.58 15 Island_Pond 2.68 +1.75 5 5.25 +1.32 16 Montpelier 0.77 +0.07 7 2.89 -0.11 18 Morrisville_AG 2.63 +1.72 5 5.10 +1.36 16 Mount_Mansfield 3.51 +2.05 6 7.85 +1.72 18 Northfield 0.67 -0.10 4 2.58 -0.36 13 Pownal 1.32 +0.41 4 3.92 -0.06 13 Rochester 1.61 +0.77 4 3.16 -0.21 13 Rutland_AG 1.55 +0.71 4 3.20 -0.16 13 Sunderland 0.60 -0.05 4 2.10 -0.75 14 Sutton 2.01 +1.08 5 4.07 +0.14 17 Townshend_Lake 0.68 -0.04 4 2.44 -0.38 15 Union_Vill_Dam 1.62 +0.92 4 3.29 +0.38 14 MASSACHUSETTS Ashburnham 1.24 +0.40 4 3.11 -0.25 14 Boston/Logan_In 0.94 +0.31 2 2.82 +0.12 8 Greenfield 1.25 +0.41 3 2.17 -1.29 9 New_Bedford 0.47 -0.20 3 1.31 -1.72 11 Otis_AFB 0.42 -0.21 1 1.25 -1.55 7 Plymouth 0.41 -0.36 1 1.58 -1.51 9 Walpole 1.46 +0.69 1 2.64 -0.71 7 West_Medway 1.59 +0.82 2 4.27 +0.92 7 Chicopee/Westov 1.35 +0.51 2 2.19 -1.39 9 Worcester 0.63 -0.28 2 1.56 -2.05 10 Worthington 1.71 +0.73 5 3.23 -0.45 13 RHODE_ISLAND Providence 0.71 +0.01 1 1.65 -1.31 8 Woonsocket 1.58 +0.67 3 2.77 -0.92 9 CONNECTICUT Bakersville 0.78 +0.06 3 1.87 -1.33 11 Bridgeport/Siko 0.45 -0.41 1 1.01 -2.29 7 Hartford/Bradle 1.13 +0.41 3 3.33 +0.13 10 Norfolk 1.01 +0.04 4 3.80 -0.28 14 Norwich 0.70 -0.13 2 2.01 -1.09 10 Thomaston_Dam 1.19 +0.28 3 1.75 -1.93 11 Willimantic 0.22 -0.69 3 1.79 -1.79 9 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 2004: 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: Some areas of the county are dry, with farmers irrigating vegetable crops. Field corn looks good. Ross Eddy (FSA), Hartford/Tolland: Picking sweet corn, cukes, summer squash, and blueberries. Strawberries are winding down, over all a very good crop. Picking shade tobacco. A lot of hay made. Marsha Jette (FSA), New London: Crops looking good. Need some rain. A lot of haying being done. Blueberries are very plentiful. Dawn Pindell (FSA), Windham: A bit dry, hay showing some stress. Corn looks good. Fruits and vegetables okay. Blueberry picking has begun. Karen Vozarik (FSA), New Haven: Most of hay is cut. It is not drying due to the humidity and passing showers. The past weekend some areas of the county received one to three inches of rain where others did not receive a drop. Vegetables look nice, though producers are still irrigating. Blueberries and raspberries are ready. Richard Meinert (Ext), CT Cooperative: Top-dressing corn. Strawberries for sale signs finally showing up. Night time rain storms made scheduling field work tricky. Warmer temperatures are finally pulling the corn taller this week. MAINE - Marvin Hedstrom, Northern Aroostook: Potatoes and small grains: Growers busy applying fungicides and competing with the rainy weather to finish final hilling. Crops growing rapidly with plenty of moisture and proper temperatures. Growers appear to have any insect and disease problems under control. Pam Hickey (Ext), Central Aroostook: Recent showers all week have prevented field work. Crops are growing rapidly and looking excellent. Emergence is 100 percent - crops are growing rapidly with showers this past week. Steve London, Southern Aroostook: Potatoes and small grains: Corn borer moths in the area, looking for them to hatch next week. Rick Kersbergen (Ext), Waldo: Lots of cool, wet weather makes good pastures, but poor corn. Strawberry harvest is going well. Still no heat to make the corn jump. Trudy Soucy (FSA), Knox/Lincoln: Fly traps are being placed in blueberry fields. Urea is now being applied to corn fields. Need some dry weather so the first crop of hay can be harvested. Wet weather is slowing down farm activities. Dr. David Yarborough (Ext), Washington: Wild blueberries: Crop is slow in maturing because of cold, wet weather conditions. A few berries are beginning to turn blue! Michael Tardy (FSA), Androscoggin: Field activities were somewhat curtailed due to rainfall during the past week. A struggle to get hay into the barn between baling and the next shower. Strawberries will have a short season because lots of plants were winter-killed. Jill Littlefield (FSA), Cumberland/York: Much needed rain arrived this week. Crops are coming along nicely. Still difficult to make dry hay due to frequent showers. Gary Raymond (FSA), Franklin: July still seems to be an extension of June. Poor hay harvest weather but we did receive some needed rain. Crops need more heat and sun to get growing. MASSACHUSETTS - Arthur Williams (FSA), Berkshire: Lots of haying. Growers are side-dressing corn. Second cutting hay looking good. Orchardist are spraying for bugs. Strawberries are gone, maybe some berries later? Frank Caruso (Ext), Plymouth: Cranberries: Pollination weather continues to be excellent, and bees have been doing the job they were paid to do. Fruit set appears to be very good to excellent so far in the early varieties. Final fruit rot fungicide applications will be going on this week. Fruitworm applications going on everywhere. Sparganothis fruit worm is showing up in selected beds. Second cranberry weevil generation should be around soon; hopefully, there will be an emergency insecticide to replace Avaunt that is effective only against the first generation. David Rose (FSA), Bristol: Sweet corn harvest has begun. Everything looks real good at this time. Also picking squash, peas, tomatoes, lettuce, cabbage, beets. John Devine (FSA), Franklin: Everything looks great and rain has arrived when it has been needed. Everyone is cultivating and side-dressing. Shade tobacco harvesting began this past weekend and field tobacco is starting to be topped. Mechanical harvesting of cucumbers also began this weekend. Roadside stands were very busy with sweet corn sales. Ted Smiarowski, Jr. (FSA), Hampshire/Hampden: The week was warm and sunny with very cool nights. Soil moisture is good with off and on showers throughout the week. Growers are scouting for diseases and insects. The harvest season began for sweet corn, cucumbers, blueberries, cabbage, and shade tobacco. Top-dressing, cultivating and hoeing continues on all farms. Mostly all crops look very good. Gary Guida, Worcester: Just another perfect week except for micro burst we had on Thursday. Some corn flattened, some on angle. Not too much serious damage. Harvesting most summer crops, spraying corn, renovating strawberry fields. As a side bar I'm a vegetable grower and the town I live in has closed the road on both ends of my farm stand for culvert replacement so I'm out of business for at least a month - maybe more. No warning or notice - just one day you wake up and wow! Road closed. Nice, huh? NEW HAMPSHIRE - Tina Savage (Ext), Carroll: Second cutting begun even as first wraps up. Week-end weather allowed for more hay to go into the barn. Warmer weather has accelerated the growth of all crops. Blueberries showing some mummyberry; isolated operations reporting up to 30 percent losses. Carl Majewski (Ext), Cheshire: Generally a dry, sunny week. No drought stress apparent yet, but some rain would be nice. Field corn looks great and is growing rapidly. Second cut hay continues, and second cut alfalfa and grass for haylage is in full swing. PYO blueberries and raspberries has started. Sweet corn continues to tassel and silk. Farms stands and farmer markets featuring greens, beets, carrots, peas, and summer squash. Steve Turaj (Ext), Coos: Dry hay operations finally getting just enough weather to make a few good bales. Some second crop haylage being cut. Larger variety of fruits and vegetables showing up at farmer's markets and farm stands. Shearing activities in Christmas trees. Ideal growing weather for hay crops. Corn has responded to warm days and a couple of warm nights. More heat would definitely help silage corn. Tom Buob (Ext), Grafton: Corn continues to grow well. Heavy rains halted haying operations late in the week. Third cutting in the early stages. Steve Schmidt (FSA), Grafton: Last week, the weather made it a little difficult for getting in any dry hay. we had light rains or showers five days out of seven. The total rain fall for the week was less than one inch. The corn is starting to look a little better, but still has some catching up to do. Almost all the first cut is in, with the exceptions being those who normally only cut one time per year. Second cut is doing well. Those who took an early first cut will be ahead of the rest on second cut. Second cut should continue to do well if adequate top soil moisture is available. George Hamilton (Ext), Hillsborough: Fruit: Strawberry harvest is over and most growers have renovated harvested beds. Orchardists are monitoring pests and crop development and apply sprays for pest control, if needed. Also, growers are training young fruit trees along with mowing orchard floor. Blueberry harvest continues and first raspberries being harvested. Some damage on young fruit trees caused by potato leaf hopper. Field Crops: Farmers continued to bale hay or make haylage at a faster rate. Vegetables: Growers concerned about irrigating crops. Growers continued harvesting beans, beets, broccoli, greens, lettuce, peas, potatoes, radishes, summer squash, and first sweet corn. Growers busy trying to side-dress fields with fertilizer, cultivating, mowing weeds, scouting for pests and spraying if needed. Continuing successive planting. Potato leaf hopper seen damaging crops. John Porter (Ext), Merrimack: Showers during the week were much needed. Moisture levels are adequate again. Second crop is being harvested on early cut hay crop silage fields. Most field corn made "foot high by the fourth of July" and a lot was chest high. Almost perfect conditions for vegetable crops, some insect problems. Early sweet corn will be ready soon. Nada Haddad (Ext), Rockingham: Strawberry picking almost done. Starting renovating strawberry beds. Some blueberry and raspberry farms opened this week. The season looks very promising. Some fields affected with mummyberry disease. Continue monitoring fruit pests and spraying accordingly. Haying continues. Picking a whole array of vegetables. Pam Marvin (FSA), Sullivan: Received much needed rain showers every couple of days. Some silage corn is four to five feet tall and looking very good. Second cut of alfalfa is underway. Sweet corn is tasseled and looks to be a great crop. Almost all of first cut of hay is done with second cut coming up nicely with spot showers and top-dressing. With fresh vegetables becoming available, the farmer's markets are doing a great job. Geoffrey Njue (Ext), Strafford: A nice sunny week with some showers in the middle of the week. A nice week for field work. Farmers continued with hay making from first cut. Vegetable growers continue to harvest early and cool season vegetable crops. Cultivating between rows for weed control and monitoring for pests and diseases. Strawberry harvesting is almost over. Blueberry and raspberry harvesting just started. Growers noticing signs of mummyberry disease in blueberries. Apples are doing well and growers are busy scouting for pests and spraying accordingly. Fall mums all planted and doing well. RHODE ISLAND - Karen Menezes (Ext), Newport: Blueberries are open for PYO and the crop looks great, some strawberries still lingering if you look hard. First cut hay going strong, spraying herbicides and pesticides. Potatoes are flowering and such a beautiful sight. VERMONT - John St. Onge/Kim Peterson (FSA), Lamoille: Last week was a rough week for harvesting grass. Corn is doing reasonably well but could use a little more heat and a little less water. Vegetable producers are marketing summer squash, beets, greens and having good luck keeping the insects under control. Dave Blodgett (NRCS), Orleans: The cool weather is having an effect on the corn crop. I've seen some fairly poor looking corn around the county. Other corn fields look good. Not much hay was harvested this past week due to rain showers. The weather has made it nearly impossible to dry hay. We need some hot and humid weather to help crop yields here. Perley Sparrow (FSA), Windham: Blueberry producers are seeing lower production because of last winter's damage. Second cut alfalfa yields are above average this year. Sweet corn is starting to show up at local produce stands along with other veggies. Pastures are being trimmed. Fertilizer being applied to some cropland. Field corn is well over seven feet Jeff Carter (Ext), Addison: Some dry hay harvest. new seeded fields ready to clip. Corn side- dressed with nitrogen. Corn varies from one inch to four feet. A little manure on hay fields. Severe thunderstorms delayed field work. Dennis Kauppila (Ext), Caledonia: Several good doses of rain plus some sun and heat allowed corn to make some headway. Corn canopy has grown to cover all of the soil now. Early farmers nearly done with second cut of grass, quite pleased with the yields. Turning into summer now. Chris Benedict (Ext), Chittenden: Due to the consistent amount of moisture that we find every week, apples are sizing up accordingly. Arthropod pressure has been slow, but the regular players are present but in low numbers. Disease pressure this year is solid, with scab being prevalent even in heavily managed blocks. Heather Darby (Ext), Franklin: Second cut has started: reports from some farmers are high quality but lower yields. Field corn is being side-dressed. Corn anywhere from one-two- leaf stage to just emerging. Weather nice last week and showers helped replenish soil moisture. Sherwin Williams, Rutland: Sprayed potatoes for blight and bugs for a second time. Putting nitrogen on all crops as needed. Cultivated and fertilized all vine crops. Harvesting good crop of peas. Bean growth slow, need more warm weather. An inch of rain on Wednesday (1.548 inches for the week) did wonders for all crops. Potatoes in full bloom, a beautiful sight. Lots of produce in the market: beets, carrots, turnips, and leafy vegetables. Early sweet corn silking out. This last rainfall will give it a big jump. Reporters are from: Extension Service (Ext), Farm Service Agency(FSA), Natural Resources Conservation Services (NRCS), or other knowledgeable individuals. -- 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 Statistician: Dianne Johnson Stat Assistant: Wayne Colpitt Deputy Director: Joe Samson 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 ***********************