State NEW ENGLAND WEEKLY CROP WEATHER Week ending date 08/22/04 Issue NH-CW3404 Volume 24, Number 18 (issued weekly on the Internet, May - October) August 23, 2004 - 4 pm -- Agricultural Summary IS SUN IN THE FORECAST? For the week ending August 22, 2004, there were 4.8 days available for field work across New England. Topsoil moisture was rated 62 percent adequate, 38 percent surplus. Subsoil moisture was rated 73 percent adequate, 27 percent surplus. Pasture condition was rated 11 percent poor, 24 percent fair, 49 percent good, 16 percent excellent. This was another unfavorable week for farmers. Humidity, morning fog and rain prevented harvesting of crops throughout the week; then sun arrived on Sunday. Major farm activities included: mowing orchards; pruning trees; spreading manure; monitoring fields; applying pesticides; cutting and baling hay; cultivating and weeding renovated strawberry bed; harvesting highbush and wild blueberries, peaches, potatoes, other vegetables, broadleaf and shade tobacco. SOIL MOISTURE ACROSS NEW ENGLAND --------------------------------------------- -- Percent -- Soil Rating This Week Last Week Last Year --------------------------------------------- Topsoil Moisture Very Short 0 0 0 Short 0 3 9 Adequate 62 62 72 Surplus 38 35 19 Subsoil Moisture Very Short 0 0 0 Short 0 4 14 Adequate 73 74 76 Surplus 27 22 10 --------------------------------------------- -- Field Crops Report Wet weather caused unfavorable conditions for harvesting and for working in the fields. Operators are still trying to finish up first cut haying and some farmers are harvesting second and third cutting. Silage corn continues to grow but is late in maturing. Maine potato growers applied fungicides and insecticides as necessary to control disease and insect pressure on a five day spray schedule. Potato late blight continues to spread in northern, central and isolated areas of southern Aroostook County. Harvest of shade tobacco continues while broadleaf was slowed by rain. -- Fruit, Vegetable, and Specialty Crops Report FRUIT: Highbush blueberry harvest are winding down with 80 percent completed and wild blueberries are over the half- way point. Early pear harvest are now underway with size reported as good. A wide range in pear conditions reported in Connecticut and Massachusetts; ranging from very poor to good in the two-state region. Apple harvest is in the early stages in New England, with growers picking Jersey Mac, Paula Red and Lodi varieties. Peach production has had late season disease pressure and excessive moisture caused some splitting. Cranberries continue to improve berry sizing from the rain. VEGETABLES: Most vegetables continue to grow but were maturing slowly due to the cool, wet season; causing concerns from reports of mildew and mold on crops. Sweet corn growers needed some sun to ripen the crop. There were also reports of a high number of corn earworm and fall armyworms. Producers harvested an array of vegetables, such as beans, cucumbers, peppers, potatoes, pumpkins, summer squash, tomatoes and winter squash. -- Crop Progress Tables FIELD CROP PROGRESS ACROSS NEW ENGLAND ---------------------------------------------------- Crop 2004 2003 5-yr Avg Condition ---------------------------------------------------- -- Percent Harvested -- Barley, ME -- 35 25 Good/Excel Oats, ME -- 20 15 Good/Excel Potatoes: Maine -- -- -- Good/Excel Mass 20 20 25 Good Rhode Isl 25 20 35 Excel/Good Silage Corn -- -- -- Good/Fair Sweet Corn 55 55 55 Good/Excel Tobacco: Shade 70 60 75 Good Broadleaf 55 65 75 Good Dry Hay: First Cut 95 99 99 Second Cut 70 70 75 Good/Fair Third Cut 15 20 25 Good/Excel ----------------------------------------------------- FRUIT CROP DEVELOPMENT ACROSS NEW ENGLAND ----------------------------------------------------- -- Percent Harvested -- Crop 2004 2003 5-yr Avg Condition ----------------------------------------------------- Apples 5 5 10 Good/Fair Peaches 55 40 55 Good/Fair Pears <5 5 5 Good/Poor Blueberries Highbush 80 80 85 Good/Fair Wild 60 75 70 Good Cranberries,MA -- -- -- Good/Fair ----------------------------------------------------- -- Weather Summary For the week ending Sunday, August 22, 2004 ---------------------------------------------- AIR TEMPERATURES PRECIPITATION STATE LO HI AVG DFN LO HI ---- --- --- --- --- ---- ---- ME 39 83 64 -1 0.07 3.64 NH 33 87 64 -1 1.01 4.06 VT 39 83 65 +0 0.43 3.17 MA 35 90 68 +0 0.99 4.17 RI 52 88 69 -1 0.00 1.63 CT 48 90 69 -1 1.23 4.16 ---------------------------------------------- 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 August 16, 2004 To: Sunday August 22, 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 49 79 65 -3 1377 -307 469 -203 Allagash 39 79 61 -2 956 -175 234 -63 Augusta_State_A 51 79 67 -1 1538 -93 578 -61 Bangor_Intl_Arp 50 79 66 +0 1464 -24 543 +7 Barnard 49 80 64 -1 1245 -55 389 -15 Bath 49 81 66 -2 1357 -158 475 -93 Bethel 46 80 64 -2 1410 -72 469 -52 Brassua_Dam 43 77 62 +0 1023 -60 248 -31 Brunswick_ME 52 76 66 -2 1534 +19 567 -1 Caribou_Municip 46 77 63 +1 1165 -52 371 +25 Corinna 49 80 64 +0 1393 -38 485 +2 Danforth 48 79 64 -2 1149 -245 332 -143 Dover-Foxcroft 50 79 63 -1 1153 -147 345 -59 Durham 50 77 65 -4 1384 -344 474 -250 East_Hiram 45 80 63 -3 1330 -146 427 -90 Eustis 43 75 60 -2 966 -89 216 -39 Frenchville 46 77 63 +2 1085 -46 321 +24 Gray 53 80 66 -1 1579 +88 598 +50 Greenville_ME 50 78 66 +3 1484 +173 553 +140 Guilford 43 78 61 -4 1001 -299 250 -154 Hollis 45 82 65 -1 1429 +17 502 +26 Houlton 43 79 63 +0 1174 -96 389 +3 Kennebunkport 51 76 64 -6 1259 -561 380 -407 Livermore_Falls 43 83 66 +3 1479 +197 557 +171 Moosehead 44 78 61 -2 1025 -58 247 -32 New_Sharon 45 80 65 +2 1343 +61 432 +46 Patten 47 78 63 -1 1116 -154 319 -67 Portage 46 77 64 +3 1141 -76 355 +9 Portland_ME 51 79 67 -1 1497 +6 562 +14 Rangeley 41 76 61 +1 1047 +29 256 +20 Sebec_Lake 49 80 64 +0 1250 -61 397 -16 Vanceboro 49 79 64 -2 1169 -147 352 -70 Waterville 51 79 66 -2 1454 -230 533 -139 NEW_HAMPSHIRE Barnstead 43 86 65 -3 1475 -173 536 -109 Benton 43 76 63 +0 1346 -27 427 +4 Berlin_AG 44 80 64 +0 1374 -9 453 +7 Bethlehem 41 78 63 -2 1251 -122 383 -41 Concord 44 85 68 +2 1845 +197 783 +138 Diamond_Pond 41 72 59 -2 888 -47 163 -21 First_Conn_Lake 39 74 59 -1 930 -5 195 +11 Greenville 50 84 68 +3 1830 +339 767 +257 Keene_AP 48 84 67 -2 1738 -98 679 -103 Lakeport 49 82 67 +2 1731 +181 707 +133 Marlow 44 79 64 -4 1215 -453 335 -309 Mount_Washingto 33 54 48 +2 94 +39 0 +0 North_Conway 45 80 65 -1 1581 +40 610 +47 Otter_Brook_Lk 49 84 67 -2 1630 -206 607 -175 Plymouth 43 78 64 -1 1357 -3 431 +1 Rochester 47 87 67 -2 1627 -126 643 -82 Weare 49 80 66 -1 1601 -67 598 -46 VERMONT Ball_Mt_Lake 42 81 64 -2 1434 -3 459 -19 Bethel 43 80 65 +1 1495 +131 536 +102 Burlington_Intl 46 80 67 -1 1811 +42 769 +34 East_Haven 39 79 64 +2 1285 +133 414 +111 Island_Pond 41 77 62 +1 1224 +90 368 +80 Montpelier 43 79 65 +1 1480 +86 529 +79 Morrisville_AG 42 81 64 -1 1312 -76 447 -7 Mount_Mansfield 40 65 55 -1 594 -12 56 -10 Northfield 43 80 65 +3 1402 +133 480 +106 Pownal 48 82 67 +3 1565 +122 532 +52 Rochester 45 80 65 +2 1463 +99 504 +70 Rutland_AG 44 78 64 -5 1560 -260 556 -206 Sunderland 47 79 65 -3 1431 -315 460 -239 Sutton 42 75 63 +2 1225 +73 360 +57 Townshend_Lake 49 83 65 -3 1595 -129 571 -133 Union_Vill_Dam 44 80 66 -2 1530 -209 579 -132 MASSACHUSETTS Ashburnham 50 83 67 +3 1717 +218 673 +143 Boston/Logan_In 57 90 70 -2 2072 -1 970 -6 Greenfield 51 84 68 -3 1852 -106 763 -110 New_Bedford 53 84 69 -4 1883 -198 803 -180 Otis_AFB 54 82 69 +0 1808 +116 779 +78 Plymouth 55 86 69 +0 1810 +56 777 +29 Walpole 53 85 68 +0 1961 +168 860 +105 West_Medway 51 89 69 +0 1969 +176 862 +107 Chicopee/Westov 50 88 69 -4 2104 -134 953 -140 Worcester 54 85 67 +0 1853 +182 766 +103 Worthington 45 84 64 -2 1509 +47 510 +18 RHODE_ISLAND Providence 57 87 71 -1 2104 +130 968 +62 Woonsocket 52 88 69 +2 1933 +170 841 +122 CONNECTICUT Bakersville 48 83 65 -7 1658 -505 600 -438 Bridgeport/Siko 58 87 73 +0 2235 +119 1072 +47 Hartford/Bradle 52 90 71 +0 2216 +61 1052 +17 Norfolk 48 85 66 +2 1638 +171 597 +98 Norwich 55 85 70 -1 2103 +106 964 +61 Thomaston_Dam 53 90 70 +3 2101 +359 950 +253 Willimantic 54 86 69 +2 1999 +224 870 +143 1-WEEK PRECIP 4-WEEK CUM PRECIP ------------- ----------------- TOTAL TOTAL STATION INCHES DFN DAYS INCHES DFN DAYS ------- ----- ---- --- ----- ---- --- MAINE Albion 1.47 +0.63 5 6.58 +3.21 16 Allagash 0.07 -0.88 2 4.10 +0.38 10 Augusta_State_A 1.69 +0.92 5 6.96 +3.91 16 Bangor_Intl_Arp 1.48 +0.71 5 4.59 +1.62 14 Barnard 1.28 +0.44 4 5.75 +2.51 15 Bath 3.07 +2.30 4 5.66 +2.72 13 Bethel 2.27 +1.36 5 5.66 +2.09 14 Brassua_Dam 1.05 +0.21 5 4.82 +1.39 15 Brunswick_ME 1.83 +1.06 4 5.10 +2.16 13 Caribou_Municip 0.50 -0.41 3 3.72 -0.02 10 Corinna 1.34 +0.49 3 5.17 +1.86 11 Danforth 1.17 +0.26 4 4.39 +0.68 13 Dover-Foxcroft 0.51 -0.33 3 3.84 +0.60 11 Durham 1.68 +0.98 4 6.84 +3.95 15 East_Hiram 1.78 +0.94 4 4.61 +1.19 17 Eustis 1.34 +0.57 4 3.87 +0.74 11 Frenchville 0.08 -0.87 2 5.47 +1.75 10 Gray 1.87 +1.24 4 7.47 +4.95 15 Greenville_ME 1.08 +0.24 5 5.37 +2.13 16 Guilford 1.68 +0.84 4 7.20 +3.96 18 Hollis 2.14 +1.44 4 6.61 +3.81 16 Houlton 1.20 +0.26 4 3.22 -0.47 13 Kennebunkport 3.64 +2.94 4 7.70 +4.90 17 Livermore_Falls 1.33 +0.35 4 4.21 +0.61 13 Moosehead 0.80 -0.04 4 3.80 +0.37 14 New_Sharon 2.12 +1.14 4 5.68 +2.08 14 Patten 0.86 -0.08 4 5.45 +1.76 14 Portage 0.42 -0.49 4 5.57 +1.83 14 Portland_ME 2.13 +1.50 4 6.21 +3.69 14 Rangeley 1.28 +0.37 4 4.52 +0.90 14 Sebec_Lake 0.91 +0.07 4 5.83 +2.59 16 Vanceboro 1.20 +0.43 4 5.25 +2.35 17 Waterville 1.48 +0.64 6 6.32 +2.95 16 NEW_HAMPSHIRE Barnstead 3.42 +2.66 5 8.29 +5.22 15 Benton 2.28 +1.37 5 4.56 +0.98 15 Berlin_AG 1.26 +0.28 5 5.84 +1.98 13 Bethlehem 2.19 +1.15 5 6.03 +1.95 16 Concord 2.35 +1.59 4 4.94 +1.87 15 Diamond_Pond 2.37 +1.20 4 6.33 +1.73 13 First_Conn_Lake 3.23 +2.06 4 8.50 +3.90 14 Greenville 2.30 +1.39 4 4.18 +0.48 12 Keene_AP 1.74 +0.86 5 3.43 -0.11 13 Lakeport 1.67 +0.83 4 4.65 +1.29 14 Marlow 3.11 +2.27 5 8.21 +4.91 14 Mount_Washingto 2.27 +0.38 5 9.21 +1.95 17 North_Conway 1.01 +0.10 4 5.65 +2.04 16 Otter_Brook_Lk 2.28 +1.40 5 6.11 +2.57 19 Plymouth 1.07 +0.20 4 3.61 +0.01 13 Rochester 2.78 +2.00 4 6.62 +3.34 12 Weare 3.17 +2.33 6 5.75 +2.45 17 VERMONT Ball_Mt_Lake 1.91 +0.93 5 4.74 +0.91 15 Bethel 1.61 +0.56 5 5.22 +1.13 17 Burlington_Intl 0.93 +0.02 4 4.11 +0.48 16 East_Haven 1.83 +0.76 6 5.80 +1.50 18 Island_Pond 1.44 +0.33 5 5.20 +0.81 18 Montpelier 2.01 +1.11 6 6.24 +2.82 21 Morrisville_AG 0.92 -0.19 5 4.89 +0.54 14 Mount_Mansfield 1.90 +0.17 4 8.08 +1.43 19 Northfield 1.98 +1.14 5 7.70 +4.29 15 Pownal 2.59 +1.61 5 8.78 +4.95 19 Rochester 2.16 +1.11 5 7.63 +3.54 14 Rutland_AG 2.15 +1.17 5 7.52 +3.72 18 Sunderland 3.17 +2.26 5 6.86 +3.47 17 Sutton 1.17 +0.10 5 4.64 +0.34 18 Townshend_Lake 2.39 +1.48 6 5.72 +2.17 17 Union_Vill_Dam 1.91 +1.07 4 4.06 +0.83 14 MASSACHUSETTS Ashburnham 3.66 +2.89 5 6.74 +3.53 17 Boston/Logan_In 1.59 +0.82 4 4.30 +1.45 10 Greenfield 1.68 +0.84 5 4.80 +1.44 16 New_Bedford 1.34 +0.36 3 6.22 +2.56 11 Otis_AFB 1.68 +0.91 3 3.65 +0.66 11 Plymouth 1.73 +0.82 3 5.93 +2.48 13 Walpole 1.68 +0.77 4 4.85 +1.40 12 West_Medway 1.58 +0.67 3 7.04 +3.59 9 Chicopee/Westov 2.03 +1.22 4 5.17 +2.05 14 Worcester 3.08 +2.22 4 5.35 +1.97 12 Worthington 2.56 +1.65 4 8.02 +4.20 16 RHODE_ISLAND Providence 0.81 -0.03 3 6.69 +3.47 11 Woonsocket 1.63 +0.72 3 7.13 +3.49 11 CONNECTICUT Bakersville 2.64 +1.80 5 5.81 +2.64 18 Bridgeport/Siko 1.72 +1.02 3 6.04 +2.99 11 Hartford/Bradle 1.37 +0.53 5 5.00 +1.83 15 Norfolk 2.50 +1.45 5 9.80 +5.75 18 Norwich 2.21 +1.30 6 7.15 +3.62 13 Thomaston_Dam 2.94 +1.96 4 5.79 +1.96 15 Willimantic 1.53 +0.69 5 6.37 +2.80 14 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: Very heavy rain fell Friday and Saturday, but we have not received any reports of crop damage at this time. Ross Eddy (FSA), Hartford/Tolland: A very muggy week. Vegetable harvest continued with a wide array of produce being marketed. Shade tobacco harvest continued. Broadleaf harvest slowed by showers. Spray schedule for sweet corn on every three days now. Blueberry harvest winding down. Very heavy rains on Saturday (up to 3 inches in Glastonbury) with high winds and several lightning strikes. Weather turned dry on Sunday and looks like a beautiful week ahead. Dawn Pindell (FSA), Windham: Spraying field corn for cucumber vine; evidence of early army worm damage. Melons short on sweetness. Hard to get dry hay in with showers and foggy mornings. Corn good in height and initial stages of full maturity; still a while before chopping. Peaches are delicious, early apples good, cucumbers, tomatoes and other vegetables doing well. Fall mums beginning. Karen Vozarik (FSA), New Haven: Received approximately 3.5 inches of rain from Charley and tomato losses are reported around the counties. Heavy rains on Saturday. High humidity most of the week but, dried out on Sunday. Joyce Meader (Ext), Windham: Threat of thunder showers from the tropical storms kept hay farmers home for the week. But on Sunday the fields were cut and rapidly drying on a beautiful low humidity day. Corn looks great. MAINE - Marvin Hedstrom, Northern Aroostook: Potatoes and small grains: Growers are busy preparing harvesting equipment and spraying fungicides. Outbreaks of late blight have growers concerned but they appear to be controlling its spread. Several acres of crops were flooded out last weekend when the St. John River overflowed its banks. Total acreage damaged is unknown at this time. Potato tuber size and quality look very good. Steve London, Southern Aroostook: Potatoes and small grains: No late blight reported; MA30 applied. Albert Dow (NRCS), Piscataquis: Farmers are cutting second crop hay. Some were still struggling against the weather to put up first crop hay. About 1.5 inches of rain fell. Donna Lamb (Ext), Piscataquis: There are still a number of hay fields that have not been harvested due to the wet weather this summer. Also, a number of fields were cut and the hay has been left in the field and the second growth has started coming up through it. Rick Kersbergen (Ext), Waldo: Wet weather continues with almost two inches of rainfall on Saturday. Many fields are now too wet to travel with tractors. Dry week ahead? Trudy Soucy (FSA), Knox/Lincoln: 38 varieties of locally grown vegetables are available! Blueberry harvest continues but should finish this week. No haying this week due to continued wet weather. Three to five inches of rain fell on Saturday in the mid-coast area. Dr. David Yarborough (Ext), Washington: Wild blueberries: Crop harvest progressing rapidly. Berry size very good because of rain. Additional rains preventing harvesters from getting into fields. Michael Tardy (FSA), Androscoggin: Wet weather continues to plague the agricultural community. Producers with hay crop are having a difficult time getting it off the ground if they bale hay. Some have not been able to complete the first crop on some fields and are working on third crop on another field. The corn is looking short and may be a light crop. Sandy Truslow (FSA), Cumberland/York: Heavy rains hit the area on Saturday, we have enough water for the rest of the season. Summer still hasn't hit, even though it is mid August. Cold nights are starting to slow sweet corn, tomatoes and melons. Gary Raymond (FSA), Franklin: Terrible hay weather again last week. Looks like a good week coming for hay but the dew is getting very heavy now. Plants should all grow like crazy with a little sunshine. Hopefully, field corn, winter squash and pumpkins will start maturing before it is too late. Wow, that was another "good" soaking on Saturday. Laura Rand (FSA), Oxford: Wet conditions prevail. Producers having a difficult time getting hay cut and dried, potato producers are finding the fields wet and muddy for harvest, silage corn is slow to mature, and sweet corn is late in maturing. Sun, Warmth, and dry conditions are needed. MASSACHUSETTS - Arthur Williams (FSA), Berkshire: Very little haying last week. Good conditions reported on most fruit but very little harvesting of peaches. Solanaceous vegetables (potato family) failing to thrive. Herbs doing well. Almost five inches of rain last week. Most row crops need more warm nights and hotter days. Ear maturity is late (no hardening up). Early color change starting on sugar maples. Frank Caruso (Ext), Plymouth: Cranberries: Quiet week, with growers enjoying the lull before harvest. They are getting the beds ready and the equipment all tuned up. Some weed clipping and ditch maintenance. Rain fell on Friday and Saturday, but not great amounts in most beds. Some wild weather in the Sharon-Wrentham area. Crop estimate is 1.8 million barrels, pretty close to what's out there, in my opinion. That is, of course, if things size up the way they should. David Rose (FSA), Bristol: The excessive rain last week caused peaches, plums and nectarines to split. There was severe weather in Norfolk county with the possibility of a small tornado. But other than that everything is OK. John Devine (FSA), Franklin: Producers are reporting scattered damage following severe thunder-storms Friday afternoon and Saturday morning. High winds and heavy rain effected some corn, tobacco and vine crops. Farmers are also dealing with scattered cases of early and late blight in potatoes. The early apple harvest has begun and this year's crop looks good! Ted Smiarowski, Jr. (FSA), Hampshire/Hampden: Hot, humid and rainy week. This weather brings on plant diseases, so growers are applying a protective spray to their crops. Harvesting an array of crops: tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, beans, sweet corn, blueberries, apples, potatoes, and lots of others. Very difficult week to harvest tobacco and hay with heavy rains and thunder storms in the area. Gary Guida, Worcester: What a storm! Tornado watch in Gardner, and with all that high wind and water many sweet corn sections have now got flattened pockets of plants on the ground. I know since I have lots of them. European Corn Borer still a problem and with all this rain on a tight 3-day spray schedule. All field crops look good with sugar pumpkins, orange and carving pumpkins sizing up well and breaking color. Fall squashes look great. SINBAR failure in strawberry fields. NEW HAMPSHIRE - Tina Savage (Ext), Carroll: Rain, rain and more rain! The grass is growing but who can get any of it into the barn? Great year for grazing. Veggies are in full swing, growing and maturing slowly everything about two weeks behind schedule. Early apples showing up at farm stands, Jersey, Macs, Paula Reds and few local peaches managed to survive. Carl Majewski (Ext), Cheshire: Same ol' same ol' - rain showers and muggy weather, though there were a couple of reasonably dry and sunny days. Ears are maturing on field corn - everything's from late blister to late milk stage. Some farms working on third cutting for haylage, a few more pecking away at second cut dry hay. Regrowth on mowed fields is excellent, and late summer seedings starting to emerge. Powdery mildew and other diseases are common in veggies, and they're still ripening slowly without bright sunshine. Steve Turaj (Ext), Coos: Still contending with weather as farms continue to try and put up some dry hay. Mowing, raking, and tedding in-between frequent, often hard, rains particularly in northern Coos. Second cut on-going, some just starting. Field corn looking good, generally in silk with some silk drying down. Need some hot weather to ripen corn. Sweet corn now available at most locations, looks free of most caterpillar problems. Cucumber, beans, mid-summer veggies available. Fungal problems pretty common in this wet year, apple scab, powdery mildew in pumpkins, etc. Some spraying to protect crop. Hasn't looked much like summer this year. Tom Buob (Ext), Grafton: Cool wet weather continues to affect corn growth and hay harvest. Corn growing slowly. Hay drying weather has been very limited. Heavy dew plus cloudy weather hasn't helped. George Hamilton (Ext), Hillsborough: Fruit: Orchardists harvesting peaches, plums, and apples (Paula Red, Lodi, Jersey Mac). Highbush blueberry harvest continues and soon be winding down, and fall raspberry harvest continued. Cultivating and weeding newly renovated strawberry beds. Orchardists busy monitoring for pests, summer pruning trees, mowing orchard floors, fixing up orchard roads and move bins into orchard. Vegetables: Harvesting an array of vegetables, including pumpkin and some winter squash. Farmers kept busy harvesting crops, monitoring pest pressures, spraying pesticides for insect and disease control where needed. Major out break of mildew in pumpkins and some winter squash. High numbers of corn earworm and fall armyworm along with increasing number of European Corn Borer. Field Crops: Hay making and cutting haylage continued during the week with the second cut and some third cutting being made. Growth has been good to excellent. The remaining first cutting is only good for mulch hay. Farmers make new seeding for pasture and hayfields. Corn looks good to excellent. John Porter (Ext), Merrimack: Silage corn still needs heat units to mature. Some late planted corn has barely tasseled. Pastures continue to hold up well and are lush. Wet conditions have caused a lot of disease problems in vegetables and slow ripening. Lot of early blight in tomatoes, white mold on beans, and smut in sweet corn. Growing degree day project in Merrimack County has shown a lot of variation in different geographic areas. RHODE ISLAND - Karen Menezes (Ext), Newport: Harvesting potatoes, sweet corn, beans, squash, tomatoes, and all summer vegetables. Pumpkins and winter squash are looking great. Good sun and rain this week. Field corn is enormous and it's been a great growing season. Marilu Soileau (FSA), All Counties: Spraying squash and pumpkins. Harvesting lots of other vegetables. Reports of tomatoes splitting from recent rains. Mold/fungus on squash and pumpkins. VERMONT - John St. Onge/Kim Peterson (FSA), Lamoille: Frequent showers continue to discourage dry hay producers with some fields not yet harvested. Barley harvest getting behind due to rainy conditions. Corn and soybean crop progressing nicely. Some manure was spread on second cut fields last week. Dave Blodgett (NRCS), Orleans: Continued rain has made it very challenging to harvest crops. Drying hay is nearly impossible. Corn has tasseled but development is slow. The wet cool summer has delayed corn maturity. The quantity of the crop varies greatly from field to field. The wetter fields will see a much lower yield then the traditionally drier fields. Perley Sparrow (FSA), Windham: Sweet corn has taken a hit from all the bad weather, fields have been flattened with the high winds and heavy rains. Drying hay is impossible and the fields are becoming to muddy to drive on. Jeff Carter (Ext), Addison: Some hay harvest and manure spreading on fields. Corn ear development starting, no dent yet on kernels. Grass regrowth good with excess field moisture. Dennis Kauppila (Ext), Caledonia: Another wet week. There was some haying, but not much 'never-rained on hay' has been made this year. Another couple of soaking rains during the week. Grass is growing, expect there will be a lot of hay knocked down this week, the forecast is for several dry days. The corn is coming along, but we have not received the heat that corn wants. It was 42 degrees the other morning. Heavy fog in the valleys tell us that fall is coming real fast. Chris Benedict (Ext), Chittenden: Early apple cultivar harvest should be getting on its way this week. Local peach production has had a year of heavy late-season disease pressure, which may lead to some storage issues. Pear size has looked good this year. 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: Travis Averill 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 ***********************