State NEW ENGLAND WEEKLY CROP WEATHER Week ending date 10/16/05 Issue NH-CW3704 Volume 25, Number 25 (issued weekly on the Internet, May - October) October 17, 2005 - 4 pm -- Agricultural Summary-- Rain, Rain, and More Rain GENERAL CONDITIONS: For the week ending October 16, 2005, there were 2.8 days suitable for field work. Topsoil moisture was rated 31% adequate, 69% surplus. Subsoil moisture was rated 43% adequate, 57% surplus. Pasture condition was rated 5% very poor, 17% poor, 43% fair, 25% good and 10% excellent. Rains from the previous weekend continued into Monday of this week causing flooding and erosion along rivers, streams, and tributaries. In the southern region, daily rain saturated fields and brought field work and other outside activities to a halt through Saturday. In the northern region, there was a break from rain on Tuesday and Wednesday. Heavy rains returned on Friday and Saturday which brought rivers, streams, and tributaries back to flood stage, and placed many fields under water again. On Saturday evening, strong winds arrived and continued into Sunday causing additional damage. The growing season is ending the same way that it began... wet! SOIL MOISTURE ACROSS NEW ENGLAND --------------------------------------------- Soil Rating This Week Last Week Last Year Topsoil -- Percent -- Very Short 0 0 0 Short 0 2 4 Adequate 31 55 90 Surplus 69 43 6 Subsoil Moisture Very Short 0 0 0 Short 0 3 4 Adequate 43 66 92 Surplus 57 31 4 --------------------------------------------- -- Fruit, Vegetable, and Specialty Crops Report FRUIT: Another wet week hindered any action in the orchards. Cranberry growers were able to progress with their harvest during the rains. Most growers wished that all this rain would have been spread out during the summer to enhance sizing of berries. Heavy rains during the week and into the weekend brought pick-your-own operations to a standstill. On Sunday, some dry weather arrived in southern New England, but the wind created unfavorable picking conditions. Some growers continued to harvest Cortland, Macoun, and other varieties during the week in spite of the weather. Pear harvest was at a standstill due to the recent rains. The harvest should finish soon if the weather conditions improve. Fall raspberry growers continued to harvest berries; no frost has been recorded to date. VEGETABLES: Heavy rain caused flooding along riverbeds and streams in the region. Pumpkins continued to float down rivers and streams as water levels proceeded to rise into fields. Some vegetable growers worked in the wet and muddy conditions to finish harvesting fall crops. Sweet corn harvest finally finished and crop condition was rated good to fair. Producers were busy harvesting brussel sprouts, cabbage, kale, pumpkins, and winter squash, but quantities were limited due to excessive rainfall. Wet weather affected sales at farmers markets and roadside stands which were overloaded with pumpkins, mums and fall vegetables. FIELD CROPS: Very little field work was done during a week of heavy rain that caused flooding and field damage. No progress was made on second and third cutting of hay. Hay harvest might be discontinued due to fields being saturated and too soft for haying equipment. Most farmers were done chopping corn silage but those that have not finished will have to wait for fields to become dry. Some of those flooded fields may never be harvested. Maine's small grain harvest was at a standstill from the recent rain but close to wrapping up the season. The saturated soils limited any combining of barley and oats and both crops might not get harvested due to the recent rains. Tobacco growers were busy taking down their crops. Some reports of excess moisture and mold growing on the edge of leaves caused enough concern for some to fire their sheds to dry the tobacco again. Massachusetts potato harvest came to a standstill and was hit hard from the recent rain. Conditions of the potato harvest in Massachusetts were rated very poor to poor in the state. Unharvested acreage of crops in flooded areas are either under water or destroyed. Rain halted the potato harvest in Maine. Some fields are so heavily saturated that they may never be harvested. -- Crop Progress Tables FIELD CROP DEVELOPMENT ACROSS NEW ENGLAND ---------------------------------------------------- Crop 2005 2004 5-yr Avg Condition ---------------------------------------------------- -- Percent Harvested -- Barley, ME 95 100 100 Fair Oats, ME 90 100 100 Fair Potatoes Maine 90 99 99 Good/Excellent Mass. 85 90 90 Very Poor/Poor Rhode Isl. 100 100 95 Fair/Good Sweet Corn 100 100 100 Good/Fair Field Corn 85 85 85 Excellent/Good Dry hay, 2nd cut 99 99 99 Good/Excellent Dry hay, 3rd cut 90 85 90 Good ---------------------------------------------------- FRUIT CROP DEVELOPMENT ACROSS NEW ENGLAND ----------------------------------------------------- --Percent Harvested-- Crop 2005 2004 5-yr Fruit Condition Avg Size ----------------------------------------------------- Apples 85 90 85 Avg Good/Fair Pears 95 90 85 Avg/B. Avg Fair/Good Cranberries, MA 80 80 70 Avg/B. Avg Good ----------------------------------------------------- -- Weather Summary For the Period: Monday October 10, 2005 To: Sunday October 16, 2005 AIR TEMPERATURES PRECIPITATION STATE LO HI AVG DFN LO HI -- --- --- --- --- ---- ---- ME 29 62 49 +3 2.19 6.82 NH 28 66 51 +5 2.67 8.72 VT 33 64 52 +5 0.15 3.81 MA 42 71 55 +4 1.95 8.40 RI 50 64 56 +4 7.14 8.27 CT 44 72 56 +4 4.43 8.55 ------------------------------------------- Copyright 2005: AWIS, Inc. All Rights Reserved. -- Weather Information Table For the Period: Monday October 10, 2005 To: Sunday October 16, 2005 AIR CUM SINCE MAR 1 TEMPERATURE GROWING DEGREE DAYS ----------- BASE-50F BASE-60F STATION LO HI AVG DFN TOT DFN TOT DFN ------- -- -- -- -- --- ---- --- ---- MAINE Albion 36 59 50 -1 2017 -146 807 +17 Allagash 30 60 46 +3 1482 +139 484 +161 Augusta_State_A 42 59 52 +3 2356 +273 1039 +293 Bangor_Intl_Arp 41 62 53 +5 2311 +417 975 +353 Barnard 36 58 48 +3 1887 +292 697 +245 Bath 44 60 52 +3 2028 +71 779 +119 Bethel 41 61 51 +3 2081 +222 828 +232 Brassua_Dam 33 57 47 +3 1671 +354 574 +264 Brunswick_ME 44 60 53 +4 2177 +220 909 +249 Caribou_Municip 32 57 48 +4 1843 +395 686 +308 Corinna 38 59 50 +4 2083 +322 842 +302 Danforth 35 57 48 +3 1824 +127 656 +131 Dover-Foxcroft 36 54 47 +2 1745 +150 589 +137 Durham 42 59 52 +2 2034 -193 802 -39 East_Hiram 43 60 50 +3 2033 +184 808 +218 Eustis 32 55 46 +3 1568 +291 504 +221 Frenchville 32 55 47 +4 1814 +471 680 +357 Gray 44 59 52 +4 2391 +463 1075 +438 Greenville_ME 37 54 48 +3 1839 +230 677 +214 Guilford 32 57 48 +3 1888 +293 724 +272 Hollis 45 59 51 +5 2124 +362 888 +356 Houlton 29 58 48 +4 1854 +340 697 +273 Kennebunkport 46 59 53 +0 1947 -447 735 -206 Livermore_Falls 38 60 51 +6 2124 +559 895 +466 Moosehead 35 58 47 +4 1609 +292 521 +211 New_Sharon 38 58 49 +4 2084 +519 867 +438 Patten 31 55 46 +2 1706 +192 594 +170 Portage 31 60 47 +3 1782 +334 651 +273 Portland_ME 47 60 54 +5 2354 +426 1033 +396 Rangeley 39 57 48 +5 1682 +438 564 +300 Sebec_Lake 33 58 48 +3 1860 +251 668 +205 Vanceboro 35 57 49 +3 1810 +167 635 +157 Waterville 40 58 51 +1 2198 +35 935 +145 NEW_HAMPSHIRE Barnstead 41 59 50 +2 2182 +102 936 +197 Benton 40 61 51 +4 2052 +353 817 +341 Berlin_AG 42 60 51 +6 2073 +376 823 +326 Bethlehem 42 66 53 +7 2068 +377 824 +348 Concord 48 61 54 +6 2648 +568 1242 +503 Diamond_Pond 41 59 48 +5 1537 +419 486 +281 First_Conn_Lake 42 59 49 +7 1522 +404 457 +252 Greenville 42 58 50 +2 2696 +808 1311 +726 Keene_AP 45 61 54 +4 2637 +286 1226 +310 Lakeport 46 60 53 +6 2641 +714 1250 +605 Marlow 44 57 51 +2 2281 +157 988 +241 Mount_Washingto 28 60 42 +12 398 +337 15 +15 North_Conway 46 62 53 +6 2299 +390 990 +357 Otter_Brook_Lk 41 59 52 +2 2395 +44 1043 +127 Plymouth 46 59 53 +8 2124 +456 855 +378 Rochester 45 58 51 +0 2395 +139 1076 +224 Weare 45 57 51 +2 2393 +269 1064 +317 VERMONT Ball_Mt_Lake 42 59 50 +2 2134 +319 866 +315 Bethel 45 61 51 +5 2289 +566 990 +486 Burlington_Intl 49 61 54 +6 2815 +603 1381 +540 East_Haven 43 63 53 +10 2052 +656 807 +470 Island_Pond 44 62 53 +9 2004 +611 785 +460 Montpelier 44 60 53 +6 2377 +647 1043 +531 Morrisville_AG 43 61 52 +6 2027 +305 804 +288 Mount_Mansfield 33 50 42 +3 1237 +521 272 +206 Northfield 44 59 51 +7 2180 +614 900 +478 Pownal 47 61 53 +6 2391 +569 1007 +455 Rochester 46 60 52 +5 2300 +577 988 +484 Rutland_AG 43 58 51 +1 2480 +153 1133 +233 Sunderland 45 59 52 +4 2362 +142 1021 +200 Sutton 39 60 50 +7 1968 +572 763 +426 Townshend_Lake 46 59 52 +3 2458 +260 1100 +277 Union_Vill_Dam 43 60 52 +4 2262 +53 968 +139 MASSACHUSETTS Ashburnham 45 58 51 +4 2553 +673 1166 +568 Boston/Logan_In 51 61 56 +0 3005 +211 1535 +307 Greenfield 48 62 55 +3 2694 +137 1260 +209 New_Bedford 50 63 57 +1 2752 -98 1303 +33 Otis_AFB 52 70 59 +6 2963 +680 1452 +587 Plymouth 50 60 56 +3 2716 +388 1323 +420 Walpole 49 61 54 +4 2893 +577 1437 +543 West_Medway 49 61 55 +5 2727 +411 1296 +402 Chicopee/Westov 50 63 56 +2 3084 +131 1537 +187 Worcester 47 60 52 +2 2798 +632 1354 +570 Worthington 44 62 51 +3 2303 +428 962 +387 RHODE_ISLAND Providence 50 64 57 +4 3201 +546 1668 +534 Woonsocket 50 61 55 +5 2902 +627 1420 +574 CONNECTICUT Bakersville 47 64 53 +0 2546 -264 1134 -119 Bridgeport/Siko 53 72 59 +3 3339 +444 1715 +388 Hartford/Bradle 50 66 57 +4 3290 +491 1709 +467 Norfolk 44 60 52 +5 2412 +550 1023 +450 Norwich 50 65 57 +4 3067 +426 1544 +435 Thomaston_Dam 49 66 55 +4 2910 +628 1410 +564 Willimantic 49 64 56 +4 2951 +623 1430 +554 1-WEEK PRECIP 4-WEEK CUM PRECIP ------------- ----------------- TOTAL TOTAL STATION INCHES DFN DAYS INCHES DFN DAYS ------- ----- ---- --- ----- ---- --- MAINE Albion 5.18 +4.34 4 11.57 +8.38 12 Allagash 2.19 +1.48 3 8.74 +5.64 11 Augusta_State_A 4.63 +3.79 4 11.09 +7.93 15 Bangor_Intl_Arp 4.55 +3.83 4 10.65 +7.68 15 Barnard 4.58 +3.78 4 9.97 +6.53 13 Bath 5.35 +4.54 4 14.27 +11.30 10 Bethel 3.50 +2.66 4 8.20 +5.03 9 Brassua_Dam 3.26 +2.52 4 6.80 +3.64 13 Brunswick_ME 5.39 +4.58 4 15.97 +13.00 9 Caribou_Municip 2.68 +2.00 3 7.77 +4.89 12 Corinna 5.21 +4.44 3 10.26 +7.08 10 Danforth 4.13 +3.37 4 8.66 +5.56 12 Dover-Foxcroft 4.45 +3.65 6 7.89 +4.45 11 Durham 4.41 +3.58 4 12.07 +9.02 10 East_Hiram 6.63 +5.75 6 14.25 +11.07 13 Eustis 4.05 +3.35 4 8.41 +5.66 12 Frenchville 2.31 +1.60 4 7.21 +4.11 15 Gray 4.78 +3.94 4 13.36 +10.24 10 Greenville_ME 4.87 +4.07 4 9.03 +5.59 12 Guilford 4.68 +3.88 4 10.45 +7.01 13 Hollis 6.82 +5.98 6 15.15 +11.96 13 Houlton 3.00 +2.30 3 6.29 +3.30 12 Kennebunkport 3.89 +3.04 5 10.83 +7.68 10 Livermore_Falls 4.29 +3.45 4 9.35 +6.09 9 Moosehead 3.75 +3.01 4 7.30 +4.14 13 New_Sharon 5.07 +4.23 4 11.01 +7.75 9 Patten 4.70 +4.00 4 8.43 +5.44 14 Portage 2.89 +2.21 3 7.73 +4.85 13 Portland_ME 4.74 +3.90 5 11.51 +8.39 11 Rangeley 3.48 +2.78 4 8.00 +5.28 13 Sebec_Lake 4.38 +3.58 4 9.25 +5.81 12 Vanceboro 4.01 +3.24 4 8.38 +5.08 11 Waterville 4.66 +3.82 4 10.64 +7.45 10 NEW_HAMPSHIRE Barnstead 8.72 +8.02 6 17.50 +14.83 12 Benton 3.22 +2.51 4 8.46 +5.65 12 Berlin_AG 3.23 +2.45 4 7.98 +4.99 8 Bethlehem 3.16 +2.45 3 6.80 +3.99 11 Concord 4.67 +3.97 5 12.33 +9.66 11 Diamond_Pond 3.30 +2.46 4 7.36 +3.95 13 First_Conn_Lake 3.16 +2.32 3 7.00 +3.59 13 Greenville 7.94 +7.14 7 14.01 +11.04 11 Keene_AP 3.88 +3.18 6 12.95 +10.23 10 Lakeport 8.13 +7.36 5 17.71 +14.86 11 Marlow 3.74 +2.90 7 14.57 +11.42 12 Mount_Washingto 6.90 +5.39 4 14.31 +8.12 11 North_Conway 3.86 +2.95 4 9.55 +6.20 9 Otter_Brook_Lk 4.48 +3.78 7 11.51 +8.79 12 Plymouth 2.92 +2.10 6 9.71 +6.68 11 Rochester 5.75 +4.82 5 13.86 +10.51 10 Weare 8.69 +7.85 6 16.72 +13.57 12 VERMONT Ball_Mt_Lake 3.54 +2.70 7 10.42 +7.08 13 Bethel 2.31 +1.47 6 6.66 +3.30 12 Burlington_Intl 1.80 +1.17 6 4.94 +2.26 14 East_Haven 2.98 +2.21 3 7.77 +4.82 12 Island_Pond 3.11 +2.41 4 6.68 +3.87 13 Montpelier 1.56 +0.93 5 6.10 +3.58 16 Morrisville_AG 1.67 +0.91 5 4.67 +1.69 14 Mount_Mansfield 3.81 +2.62 6 9.63 +4.61 16 Northfield 1.96 +1.26 6 6.35 +3.55 12 Pownal 3.69 +2.85 7 11.23 +7.89 15 Rochester 1.98 +1.14 5 6.77 +3.41 11 Rutland_AG 2.78 +2.15 7 7.77 +4.94 13 Sunderland 1.93 +1.30 6 9.43 +6.64 14 Sutton 2.31 +1.54 4 6.53 +3.58 15 Townshend_Lake 3.19 +2.48 7 9.69 +6.85 13 Union_Vill_Dam 0.15 -0.59 4 6.60 +3.61 10 MASSACHUSETTS Ashburnham 4.58 +3.87 7 11.30 +8.56 12 Boston/Logan_In 4.50 +3.80 5 6.95 +4.15 10 Greenfield 3.64 +2.87 6 9.85 +6.77 12 New_Bedford 6.58 +5.81 7 10.63 +7.66 12 Otis_AFB 4.37 +3.53 7 7.83 +4.52 13 Plymouth 5.23 +4.35 7 8.76 +5.15 11 Walpole 7.52 +6.68 7 11.23 +7.87 12 West_Medway 6.13 +5.29 7 11.31 +7.95 12 Chicopee/Westov 4.88 +4.11 7 12.81 +9.68 12 Worcester 8.40 +7.42 7 13.25 +9.37 13 Worthington 4.03 +3.20 7 15.26 +11.97 14 RHODE_ISLAND Providence 8.23 +7.41 7 12.23 +9.10 13 Woonsocket 8.27 +7.36 7 12.32 +8.86 12 CONNECTICUT Bakersville 4.76 +3.99 7 11.58 +8.31 12 Bridgeport/Siko 6.96 +6.28 6 10.19 +7.44 13 Hartford/Bradle 5.51 +4.74 6 11.48 +8.21 10 Norfolk 4.43 +3.59 7 11.77 +8.23 12 Norwich 6.72 +5.81 7 10.98 +7.43 11 Thomaston_Dam 5.95 +5.10 7 13.97 +10.43 14 Willimantic 6.07 +5.16 7 10.49 +6.83 12 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 2005: AWIS, Inc. All Rights Reserved. For detailed ag weather forecasts and data visit the AWIShome page at www.awis.com or call toll free at1-888-798-9955. -- Other Agricultural Comments and News CONNECTICUT - Howard Rood (FSA), Fairfield/Litchfield: It was a rainy week. Very little field work was done. Jude Boucher (Ext), Tolland: Rain...too much, too late! Ross Eddy (FSA), Hartford/Tolland: Excessive rain kept on coming all week with numerous recordings of 15 inches or more. Friday night was torrential rain which led to flooding on Saturday and Sunday. Pumpkins floating down the Connecticut and Farmington Rivers. Broadleaf tobacco hanging in sheds picked up excess moisture and growing mold on the edge of leaves. Some producers tried to fire their sheds to dry tobacco again. Concerns over mold in grain corn by the time it gets combined. Marsha Jette (FSA), New London: Heavy rains prevented field work and chopping of the final acres of field corn. Dawn Pindell (FSA), Windham: Rain, rain, rain for nine days. Local flooding, roads closed, equipment and cellars wet in many areas, kept people from getting into orchards until Saturday when they picked anyway despite the showers. Sunday the big bright sun came out and people were at orchards busy buying cider, apples, vegetables, mums, and jams. No frost yet. Field corn left to be picked is actually still green in north part of county. Pumpkins to deliver but can't get in the fields to pick them, the soil is saturated. Brooklyn Ag Center open house well attended with people interested in forest management walk, master gardener program walk and agency exhibits. Nancy Welsh (FSA), New Haven: Heavy rains pounded the entire two county regions this week. Anything requiring outside work was very difficult to accomplish. There is a lot of standing water and gully erosion being reported on cropland. Joyce Meader (Ext), Windham: Pumpkins floating down the Quinebaug River, corn under water. Such are the risks of good river bottom land. Sun finally came out. Richard Meinert (Ext), CT Cooperative: Rain, rain and more rain! Watch the rain fall and shore up the leaks was about all we did this past week! MAINE - Marvin Hedstrom, Northern Aroostook: Potatoes and small grains: Most growers have completed potato harvest, leaving wet areas in the fields they could not get equipment though. Those who have not finished will have a difficult time harvesting the rest as fields are saturated with over three inches of rain from Saturday and Sunday. Some small grains remain in the fields and probably won't get harvested. Not much other field work has been done due to the wet fields. Pam Hickey (Ext), Central Aroostook: Farmers have been trying to finish potato harvest. Most farmers have finished but some still have four to five days left to harvest. This weekend we received 3.5 inches in this area. 5gh. Steve London, Southern Aroostook: Potatoes and small grains: Rain has put a hold on harvest. Waiting for soil to dry up to finish harvest. Leslie Nelson (NRCS), Piscataquis: More rain keeping fields saturated. Many fields have standing water making harvest difficult (or impossible!). Wet weekend weather has deterred customers from u-pick apples and pumpkins. Donna Lamb (Ext), Piscataquis: Excessive rain has stopped all field operations until the fields have a chance to dry out. Donald Burke (FSA), Waldo: The ground was too wet to do much field work. Farmers are determined to finish harvesting their corn silage when things dry out. Plans for harvesting third cut of hay may be delayed or curtailed. Manure pits are full and need to be spread this fall, but the ground is too soft. This area has received over a foot of rain over the last two weekends. The growing season is ending the same way it began...wet! Trudy Soucy (FSA), Knox/Lincoln: Fortunately all silage corn in this area had been harvested before the heavy rains. Over 12 inches of rain in the mid-coast over an eight day period has put a hold on most field work. Fields are too soft to spread manure and manure pits are full and need to be emptied before winter. Hayfields are too soft for haying equipment. Sandy Truslow (FSA), Cumberland/York: The area received another 4-5 inches of rain over the weekend. Silage corn that was not harvested before the rains may have to be left in the field. Gary Raymond (FSA), Franklin: More rain, more flooding. Some soybeans have gone under water twice. That might not be good. Time to finish getting that firewood in. Apple harvest is behind schedule. Marcia Hall (FSA), Oxford: Oxford County producers have had another weekend of very wet weather. Several inches of rain along with high winds have brought very wet soils. Crop fields have standing water and have made harvesting come to a standstill. Sunshine will be welcomed! Laura Rand (FSA), Androscoggin: Another week of downpours. Producers are finding it difficult to get out on the ground to perform normal farming activities. Weekend rain hampered any prospects of outside work. Rivers are overflowing and some gullying and erosion. MASSACHUSETTS - Arthur Williams (FSA), Berkshire: Some more rain 1/2 to 1 3/4 inches this week, making it very damp and muggy. Some low ground had water to the top of the silage corn stalks, leaving a lot of debris in the fields of both corn and hay fields. Reports of pumpkins floating in streams. No frost, yet. What's coming for the winter is still a big question. Frank Caruso (Ext), Plymouth: Cranberries: Everyone was water harvesting in the rain this week. The area got variable amounts of rain, but most places got at least five inches. Where was this rain when we needed it in August to size the berries? No dry harvesting was done this week. Sunday was the first day any could be attempted and the vines were probably still wet where there was overgrowth. It looks like color will never reach the desirable levels this harvest. No cold nights, although growers won't be too upset - they got their rest this fall! Jason Otto (FSA), Bristol: A very wet week slowed the fall sales. Heavy rains around the area gave way to flooding. Corn chopping stopped due to flooded fields. John Devine (FSA), Franklin: Twelve to 16 inches of rain in an 8-day period has left Franklin County with severe flooding and erosion problems. Producers from all areas of the County are seeking emergency assistance to repair damaged fields and roadways. Unharvested crops in flood-prone areas are either under water or gone. These include pumpkins, potatoes, winter squash and silage/grain corn. Harvested crops in these areas, including cut silage and wrapped hay, in some cases, have floated down the river. Tobacco farmers have reported that extreme moisture is effecting their crop. Ted Smiarowski, Jr. (FSA), Hampshire/Hampden: Rainy all week long. Harvesting of potatoes and corn grain came to a standstill. Harvesting cabbage, greens, and pumpkins was difficult because of the muddy and wet conditions. Many tobacco growers were taking down their crop due to the great tobacco damps they received this week. Gary Guida, Worcester: What a weather week! No field work possible. Farm stands overloaded with pumpkins and fall products, as retail sales were terrible. Finally Sunday the rain stopped and citizens came out in force to support local growers and apple orchards, but it sure was windy. Fall raspberries, cranberries, and concord grapes only crops left to harvest here. No frost yet. NEW HAMPSHIRE - Amy Ouellette (Ext), Belknap: The rain put a stop to most field work this week. Wet conditions and high winds weren't good for apple picking business this weekend. Macoun, Cortland and many other varieties are being harvested. Tina Savage (Ext), Carroll: Wet, windy weather predominates. Most crops finished for the season, still no frost. Leaves not getting much color but many have fallen. Leaves seem to be about two weeks behind. Some of the leaf peeping season may still be salvaged. Looking forward to some sun. Carl Majewski (Ext), Cheshire: Good grief! Rainy weather straight through the week, with heavy precipitation over the weekend before the sun finally peeked out late Saturday afternoon and Sunday. Much of the cropland appears to be OK, but there are fields along the Ashuelot and Cold Rivers with severe damage. Agriculturally, not a whole heck of a lot going on. The only thing left are pumpkins, a number of which have literally floated away and apples, which no one really felt like picking. Tom Buob (Ext), Grafton: Not much field activity this week due to wet fields and rains. Steve Schmidt (FSA), Grafton: Last week we saw the sun one day. The rest of the week it was cold and damp or rainy. Nearly seven inches of rain fell during the week. George Hamilton (Ext), Hillsborough: Weather: Major rain showers occurred again during the week and Saturday causing flooding and eroding farm fields. Fruit: Pick-your-own apple operations had a bad rainy week and weekend! Apple harvest is in full swing with the end in sight. Vegetables: Good demand for all vegetables continues where we still have not had a major county wide frost. Growers are harvesting wide array of vegetables including: cabbage, kale, brussel sprouts, winter squash and pumpkins along with the tail end of warm season crops. Farmers kept busy working on harvested fields by pulling plastic mulch & tomato stakes. Too wet to do any tractor work on fields. At three farms, unharvested pumpkins were carried away by the strong flooded river current. Field Crops: Silage corn chopping stopped due to wet weather, with the end is in sight. Some soil erosion occurred on August and September planted hayfields and pastures. Sadie Puglisi (Ext), Merrimack: It's been rain and more rain. Any low area is flooded. Not a lot of days to get harvesting done. Looking forward to some sun this week if we are lucky. Nada Haddad (Ext), Rockingham: Two weekends in a row with heavy rain and gusty winds made field work tough. Some fields are very wet and not accessible for work or harvesting of crops. PYO apples and farm stands affected by the wet weather: slow traffic. Pumpkins, gourds mums, winter squashes, kales still available. No frost yet. Pam Marvin (FSA), Sullivan: Rain, rain go away. With two weekends in a row of heavy rain, many fields are either under water or waterlogged. Almost all of the silage corn has been cut with only a few fields left to get. Could be tricky. Third cut of hay could be lost in some areas due to too wet fields. There are some washouts and debris along some fields in the lower half of the county. Assessments still ongoing. To date, no frost has been reported which is allowing late fall chores to get done. Geoffrey Njue (Ext), Strafford: Rain showers throughout the week. This was a very difficult week for any kind of field work. Apple and fall raspberry continued through the week but it was slowed down significantly by the rains. Harvesting of sweet corn and other vegetables was also slowed down by the rains. No haying was possible due to excessive rains. RHODE ISLAND - Karen Menezes (Ext), Newport: Heavy rains, high winds and some flooding made for a storm filled week. Did get some field corn chopped in between the rain and was able to get in some winter squash, but the remainder of the week consisted of working on equipment and staying inside. The rain did help with soil moisture but we sure would have liked getting it a little at a time and not all at once. VERMONT - John St. Onge/Kim Peterson (FSA), Lamoille: Very slow week for fieldwork in this area. Persistent rain has left the ground saturated and difficult for equipment travel. End of week brought some minor lowland flooding. Most crops have been harvested in those areas. Dave Blodgett (NRCS), Orleans: Most farms have finished their corn harvest. We have had a lot of rain this week making field conditions wet and muddy. Some farmers are emptying their manure pits in preparation for winter. Pastures are still doing well for this time of year considering that we have not had a real killing frost in most areas of the county. This is very unusual for this late in the year. Perley Sparrow (FSA), Windham: Very wet week not much field work done. Most all corn has been harvested. Sherwin Williams, Rutland: All fields planted this year have all been seeded back to winter rye. Germination has been good with a good cover crop. Lots of rain, 4.152 inches, but ground was dry so most of it went where it should. The fall season at its peak. Garden markets full of pumpkins, potatoes, squash with all kinds of fall decorations. Good time for squash and pumpkin sales. Good week to decorate for fall. 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, send an e-mail message to listserv@newsbox.usda.gov and in the body, type subscribe usda-new-eng-crop-weather Statistician: Travil Averill Stat Assistant: Deirdre Davis Deputy Director: Gerald Tillman New England Agricultural Statistics 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*********************