State NEW ENGLAND WEEKLY CROP WEATHER Week ending date 09/30/01 Issue NH-CW3901 Volume 21, Number 22 (issued weekly on the Internet, May - October) October 1, 2001 - 4 pm Agricultural Summary FALL TEMPERATURES ARRIVE For the week ending September 30, 2001, there were 5.9 days available for fieldwork across New England. Pasture condition was rated as 11% very poor, 31% poor, 42% fair, 16% good, 0% excellent. Major farm activities included: liming and fertilizing fields; re-seeding pastures and hay fields; spreading manure; cutting hay and chopping haylage; and harvesting oats, barley, silage corn, potatoes, apples, peaches, pears, Fall raspberries, cranberries, sweet corn and other vegetables. SOIL MOISTURE ACROSS NEW ENGLAND --------------------------------------------- -- Percent -- Soil Rating This Week Last Week Last Year --------------------------------------------- Topsoil Moisture Very Short 8 25 0 Short 48 44 11 Adequate 43 28 86 Surplus 1 3 3 Subsoil Moisture Very Short 33 40 0 Short 26 28 7 Adequate 41 29 91 Surplus 0 3 2 --------------------------------------------- Field Crops Report Hard frost hit northern New England last week and rain showers hampered harvest activities region wide. Fall is in the air as cool temperatures moved in and pumpkins, gourds, Indian corn, and other Fall decorations were hot items for sale at roadside stands. Pasture regrowth had been slow this year due to hot, dry conditions, but recent rains and cooler temperatures have helped speed things up. Potato harvest in Rhode Island is nearing completion; harvest in Maine and Massachusetts is close to normal. Maine oat and barley harvest is winding down. Silage harvest is well underway, with variable yields reported. Tobacco growers are beginning to take down leaves from the sheds. Both second and third crops of hay remain in fair to poor condition. Fruit, Vegetable, and Specialty Crops Report FRUIT: The harvest of apples, pears, cranberries and Fall raspberries continued last week. Peach and highbush blueberry harvests were completed by week's end. Heavy rains caused increase drop in apple orchards; the crop has been doing well at farm stands and pick-your-own operations. Water harvesting began for Massachusetts' cranberry crop; berry size has been reported as small this year. VEGETABLES: The harvest of sweet corn, pumpkins, tomatoes, peppers, winter squash and other vegetables continued last week. Frost killed off some vegetable crops in parts of the region. Pumpkin size has been reported as below average this year, but the crop is of good quality. Some sweet corn growers have completed harvest, others are not far behind. Farmers have been busy cleaning up harvested vegetable fields. Crop Progress Tables FIELD CROP PROGRESS ACROSS NEW ENGLAND ---------------------------------------------------- -- Percent Harvested -- Crop 2001 2000 5-yr Avg Condition ---------------------------------------------------- Potatoes Maine 55 60 50 Good Mass 70 75 75 Good/Fair Rhode Isl 95 70 75 Good/Excel Oats, ME 95 80 90 Good Barley, ME 95 85 90 Good Silage Corn 70 35 45 Good/Fair Sweet Corn 99 95 95 Good/Fair Dry Hay Second Cut 95 95 90 Fair/Poor Third Cut 75 80 75 Fair/Poor ----------------------------------------------------- FRUIT CROP DEVELOPMENT ACROSS NEW ENGLAND ----------------------------------------------------- -- Percent Harvested -- Crop 2001 2000 5-yr Avg Condition ----------------------------------------------------- Apples 65 60 60 Good/Fair Peaches 100 100 99 Fair/Good Pears 80 60 60 Poor/Fair Cranberries,MA 20 10 15 Good/Fair Blueberries Highbush 100 100 100 Fair/Good ----------------------------------------------------- Weather Summary For the week ending Sunday, September 30, 2001 ---------------------------------------------- AIR TEMPERATURES PRECIPITATION STATE LO HI AVG DFN LO HI -- --- --- --- --- ---- ---- ME 26 79 56 +4 0.59 3.19 NH 23 86 54 +2 0.39 3.83 VT 28 79 54 +1 0.37 2.89 MA 33 82 60 +3 0.30 4.08 RI 42 85 62 +3 0.23 1.46 CT 38 80 60 +2 0.08 2.53 ---------------------------------------------- Copyright 2001: AWIS, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Weather Information Table AIR CUM SINCE MAR 1 TEMPERATURE GROWING DEGREE DAYS ----------- BASE-50F BASE-60F STATION LO HI AVG DFN TOT DFN TOT DFN ------- -- -- -- -- --- ---- --- ---- MAINE Albion 29 75 55 -1 2053 -54 791 +1 Allagash 27 77 53 +5 1510 +176 451 +128 Augusta_ME 38 76 58 +4 2431 +398 1061 +315 Bangor 32 76 57 +4 2295 +442 946 +324 Barnard 29 76 56 +5 1977 +400 710 +258 Bath 38 78 57 +3 2034 +124 769 +109 Bethel 30 77 56 +3 2036 +212 735 +139 Brassua_Dam 30 73 53 +4 1637 +333 494 +184 Brunswick_ME 39 74 58 +3 2183 +273 871 +211 Caribou 29 73 55 +6 1900 +464 672 +294 Corinna 31 76 57 +5 2155 +420 835 +295 Danforth 28 76 55 +4 1764 +87 607 +82 Dover-Foxcroft 33 73 55 +4 1832 +255 609 +157 Durham 36 75 57 +0 2056 -115 796 -45 East_Hiram 32 74 55 +2 1976 +160 735 +145 Eustis 27 71 51 +2 1467 +202 419 +136 Frenchville 27 71 53 +4 1722 +388 562 +239 Gray 39 74 58 +4 2431 +547 1073 +436 Greenville_ME 30 73 55 +4 1919 +329 696 +233 Guilford 26 73 53 +3 1937 +360 741 +289 Hollis 33 75 56 +4 2134 +400 855 +323 Houlton 26 75 55 +6 1844 +344 660 +236 Kennebunkport 37 73 57 -2 1984 -333 731 -207 Livermore_Falls 28 78 56 +5 2156 +611 874 +445 Moosehead 27 77 54 +4 1612 +308 491 +181 New_Sharon 32 79 58 +7 2339 +794 987 +558 Patten 29 72 54 +5 1615 +115 489 +65 Portage 29 74 56 +6 1935 +499 700 +322 Portland_ME 41 74 59 +5 2257 +373 934 +297 Rangeley 26 72 53 +4 1517 +285 416 +152 Sebec_Lake 31 75 56 +6 1916 +326 685 +222 Vanceboro 30 74 55 +4 1868 +251 643 +165 Waterville 35 76 58 +2 2285 +178 939 +149 NEW HAMPSHIRE Barnstead 36 76 56 +2 2311 +277 979 +240 Benton 30 72 53 +1 1921 +255 681 +205 Berlin_AG 30 72 55 +4 1957 +287 696 +199 Bethlehem 28 75 53 +1 1794 +132 591 +115 Concord 29 78 57 +3 2406 +372 1060 +321 Diamond_Pond 29 68 50 +3 1352 +245 357 +152 First_Conn_Lake 28 70 51 +3 1268 +161 311 +106 Greenville 30 86 53 -2 2073 +231 810 +225 Keene_AP 30 75 56 +0 2415 +128 1046 +132 Lakeport 41 78 59 +6 2552 +661 1162 +517 Marlow 30 76 52 -4 1795 -274 619 -128 Mt_Washington 24 53 39 +3 244 +183 10 +10 North_Conway 37 73 56 +4 2336 +460 982 +349 Otter_Brook_Lk 37 76 55 -2 2185 -102 849 -65 Plymouth 29 76 54 +3 1887 +245 651 +174 Rochester 36 81 57 +2 2394 +201 1051 +200 Weare 33 76 55 -1 2061 -8 770 +23 VERMONT Ball_Mt_Lake 34 74 52 -2 1581 -193 480 -71 Bethel 31 75 54 +2 2107 +422 819 +315 Burlington_VT 36 79 57 +3 2603 +441 1194 +353 East_Haven 29 76 55 +6 1707 +329 535 +198 Island_Pond 30 73 54 +4 1752 +382 576 +251 Montpelier 30 72 54 +2 1981 +285 746 +234 Morrisville_AG 28 74 54 +2 1726 +36 569 +53 Mount_Mansfield 33 58 46 +2 1035 +321 222 +156 Northfield 31 74 54 +4 1951 +412 704 +282 Pownal 35 73 54 +2 2051 +271 740 +188 Rochester 32 78 54 +1 1936 +251 685 +181 Rutland_AG 31 76 53 -4 2069 -190 761 -131 Sunderland 36 74 53 -4 1809 -354 597 -218 Sutton 30 73 54 +5 1810 +432 608 +271 Townshend_Lake 35 77 54 -2 2141 -1 841 +19 Union_Vill_Dam 32 73 54 -2 2068 -89 783 -46 MASSACHUSETTS Ashburnham 42 75 57 +4 2361 +520 990 +392 Boston 50 75 62 +2 2922 +245 1447 +238 Greenfield 38 82 58 -1 2569 +99 1173 +133 New_Bedford 43 76 62 +0 2649 -70 1202 -44 Otis_AFB 46 75 63 +5 2633 +435 1219 +362 Plymouth 42 77 62 +5 2538 +290 1123 +227 Walpole 43 78 61 +5 2741 +493 1289 +402 West_Medway 42 80 60 +4 2708 +460 1264 +377 Westover 39 77 59 -2 2778 -63 1321 -8 Worcester 41 73 58 +2 2494 +395 1094 +317 Worthington 36 74 54 -2 1969 +145 699 +124 RHODE ISLAND Providence 47 76 62 +3 2923 +372 1430 +312 Woonsocket 42 85 62 +6 2891 +677 1432 +587 CONNECTICUT Bakersville 38 75 55 -5 2321 -394 965 -272 Bridgeport 49 78 63 +2 3054 +291 1535 +235 Hartford_AP 44 78 61 +3 2911 +203 1426 +195 Norfolk 41 76 59 +6 2327 +509 957 +384 Norwich 44 80 62 +3 2886 +340 1390 +294 Thomaston_Dam 39 79 58 +1 2487 +284 1086 +251 Willimantic 42 79 61 +4 2858 +608 1365 +497 1-WEEK PRECIP 4-WEEK CUM PRECIP ------------- ----------------- TOTAL TOTAL STATION INCHES DFN DAYS INCHES DFN DAYS ------- ----- ---- --- ----- ---- --- MAINE Albion 1.79 +1.02 1 3.23 +0.20 5 Allagash 1.30 +0.50 2 2.38 -1.04 8 Augusta_ME 1.78 +1.01 4 3.08 +0.17 10 Bangor 2.09 +1.32 4 3.28 +0.08 10 Barnard 1.81 +0.90 2 3.24 -0.40 8 Bath 1.41 +0.71 3 2.53 -0.27 9 Bethel 2.31 +1.54 2 3.71 +0.59 8 Brassua_Dam 0.65 -0.18 2 1.53 -1.86 9 Brunswick_ME 2.05 +1.35 3 3.54 +0.74 9 Caribou 2.00 +1.25 3 3.27 +0.07 9 Corinna 1.76 +0.94 1 2.42 -0.97 5 Danforth 1.29 +0.52 3 2.96 -0.38 8 Dover-Foxcroft 1.59 +0.68 2 2.49 -1.15 6 Durham 1.61 +0.88 4 3.25 +0.42 10 East_Hiram 1.33 +0.57 3 2.36 -0.56 8 Eustis 0.86 +0.16 1 1.93 -0.94 6 Frenchville 1.71 +0.91 3 3.29 -0.13 10 Gray 1.56 +0.79 4 2.92 +0.03 9 Greenville_ME 0.87 -0.04 2 3.10 -0.54 7 Guilford 1.51 +0.60 3 2.79 -0.85 8 Hollis 1.35 +0.58 4 2.18 -0.87 11 Houlton 1.28 +0.51 2 2.07 -1.28 6 Kennebunkport 1.55 +0.78 4 3.35 +0.45 8 Livermore_Falls 1.50 +0.73 4 2.44 -0.88 9 Moosehead 0.59 -0.24 1 1.47 -1.92 8 New_Sharon 1.34 +0.57 2 2.42 -0.90 6 Patten 3.19 +2.42 2 5.31 +1.96 7 Portage 2.80 +2.05 4 3.77 +0.57 10 Portland_ME 1.75 +0.98 4 3.59 +0.70 10 Rangeley 0.67 +0.00 3 1.85 -1.02 7 Sebec_Lake 1.76 +0.85 1 3.46 -0.18 6 Vanceboro 1.85 +0.97 3 3.17 -0.44 8 Waterville 1.26 +0.49 2 2.17 -0.86 6 NEW HAMPSHIRE Barnstead 1.55 +0.91 3 3.21 +0.60 9 Benton 1.67 +0.97 3 3.63 +0.69 9 Berlin_AG 0.97 +0.25 3 2.09 -0.96 8 Bethlehem 1.05 +0.35 3 3.94 +0.98 9 Concord 1.63 +0.99 3 3.06 +0.45 9 Diamond_Pond 1.12 +0.28 4 2.39 -1.33 9 First_Conn_Lake 0.72 -0.12 4 1.86 -1.86 11 Greenville 2.25 +1.55 3 4.63 +1.74 9 Keene_AP 0.71 +0.07 3 2.55 -0.23 9 Lakeport 1.28 +0.58 3 3.31 +0.57 8 Marlow 0.98 +0.21 4 3.39 +0.28 11 Mt_Washington 3.83 +2.25 4 6.49 -0.35 11 North_Conway 1.43 +0.62 4 3.15 -0.05 10 Otter_Brook_Lk 1.00 +0.36 4 3.97 +1.19 11 Plymouth 2.03 +1.31 3 3.81 +0.91 8 Rochester 1.06 +0.29 3 2.30 -0.69 8 Weare 1.91 +1.14 3 3.81 +0.70 9 VERMONT Ball_Mt_Lake 2.74 +1.90 4 4.90 +1.38 10 Bethel 1.81 +0.97 4 3.44 -0.08 9 Burlington_VT 0.37 -0.33 4 0.94 -2.12 6 East_Haven 1.65 +0.94 5 3.00 -0.16 10 Island_Pond 1.34 +0.64 2 2.57 -0.54 7 Montpelier 2.32 +1.69 6 3.03 +0.37 11 Morrisville_AG 1.36 +0.60 3 2.77 -0.50 7 Mount_Mansfield 2.18 +0.89 2 4.19 -1.52 8 Northfield 1.87 +1.17 4 2.96 +0.00 9 Pownal 2.11 +1.27 3 4.30 +0.78 8 Rochester 1.82 +0.98 4 3.35 -0.17 9 Rutland_AG 1.33 +0.58 2 2.83 -0.47 6 Sunderland 1.07 +0.34 3 3.49 +0.27 9 Sutton 0.93 +0.22 2 1.97 -1.19 8 Townshend_Lake 2.89 +2.19 4 7.71 +4.67 13 Union_Vill_Dam 1.10 +0.33 4 3.82 +0.74 9 MASSACHUSETTS Ashburnham 1.33 +0.65 3 3.49 +0.77 10 Boston 0.80 +0.10 2 2.27 -0.57 7 Greenfield 0.64 -0.13 3 3.78 +0.60 11 New_Bedford 0.30 -0.42 4 2.68 -0.45 9 Otis_AFB 0.52 -0.32 2 1.63 -1.53 7 Plymouth 0.34 -0.57 2 2.99 -0.83 10 Walpole 0.32 -0.52 1 1.78 -1.67 6 West_Medway 0.40 -0.44 1 1.79 -1.66 6 Westover 0.71 -0.06 3 2.51 -0.77 8 Worcester 1.39 +0.41 3 3.21 -0.54 9 Worthington 2.06 +1.22 3 6.32 +2.91 9 RHODE ISLAND Providence 0.46 -0.31 3 3.87 +0.63 7 Woonsocket 0.44 -0.40 2 1.96 -1.57 8 CONNECTICUT Bakersville 1.41 +0.57 3 5.29 +1.76 9 Bridgeport 0.08 -0.62 2 1.67 -1.20 7 Hartford_AP 0.45 -0.39 2 3.00 -0.53 8 Norfolk 2.53 +1.62 3 5.75 +1.92 8 Norwich 1.02 +0.15 3 3.29 -0.31 9 Thomaston_Dam 1.41 +0.50 4 4.84 +1.10 10 Willimantic 1.68 +0.77 2 3.62 -0.04 10 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 2001: 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: Rains at the end of the week slowed silage harvest. Ears are poorly filled out because of summer's drought. Ross Eddy (FSA), Hartford/Tolland: Corn silage harvest continues at a rapid pace. Vegetable harvest continues since frost has not shown up yet. Picking winter squash and pumpkins. Seeding winter rye for cover crop. Dawn Pindell (FSA), Windham: A lovely Fall week for family fun in orchards. Pre-school and school groups exploring the land of apple and pumpkin production. Corn harvest continues, with yields from 7 tons (low) to 24 tons (high) per acre. Rye cover planted as chopping continues. Grain production okay. Spreading of semi-liquid plant food is ongoing. Chrysanthemums adding color to the changing Fall landscape. Nancy Welsh/Nancy Lockman (FSA), New Haven: Pear crop is way below average. Apples and pumpkins are being picked. Silage is being harvested between rains. Silage is good in some areas and poor in others. MAINE - Marvin Hedstrom, Northern Aroostook: Now we get rain! Some areas got as much as four inches. Growers were out of the fields for two to two-and-one-half days due to wet conditions. However, harvesting conditions were very good by the weekend. Crews are putting in long days to get this crop out of the ground. Potato yields continue to be very spotty, with some surprises and also some disappointments. Quality is very good. Dee Potter (Ext), Northern Aroostook: Potato harvest interrupted mid-week by rain. Frost is on the ground most mornings. Limited Fall pastures available. Pam Hickey (Ext), Central Aroostook: Harvesting of potatoes is in full swing. The crop is looking good. Soybeans are maturing. Canola is all harvested. Albert Dow (NRCS), Piscataquis: A frost hit the last day of September. Grass growth has responded to the recent rain as much as could be expected for this late in the season. Donna Lamb (Ext), Piscataquis: Corn silage harvest is progressing. Widespread frosts came this weekend. Pastures are finally rebounding with the rain and cool temperatures. Janet King/Jennifer Zweig (FSA), Somerset: Somerset County still needs rain before Winter. Silage corn is being harvested. Gardens are finishing up. Rick Kersbergen (Ext), Waldo: One good rainfall has helped settle topsoil. Frost on Saturday night was widespread. Corn silage harvest almost done. Trudy Soucy (FSA), Knox/Lincoln: Fall work on blueberry fields has begun. Silage corn yields are good. Two inches of rain fell during the week. Michael Tardy (FSA), Androscoggin: The silage corn harvest is almost complete. We've had reports that range from "awful" to "pretty good." Parts of the county appeared to have received enough rain to help corn grow; other parts received little, if any, rain. Those areas produced very few mature ears of corn for harvest. The apple crop looks pretty good. The season of growth is winding down. Parker Rand (FSA), Cumberland/York: Finally some decent rain, though not enough. Fall harvest is going well and the colors are beginning to show. Gary Raymond (FSA), Franklin: Frost has been heavy enough to finish most vegetable gardens. Corn silage production looks good in this area. We still need more ground water supplies. Laura Rand (FSA), Oxford: WOW! What a switch in weather! We had a couple of wet days, however, no real accumulation of water, just enough to make the grass green. Then later in the week Fall really set in with frosty nights! Farmers are busy with getting harvest activities wrapped up. This is Fryeburg Fair week and many are displaying livestock and giving the tractor a workout on the tractor pulls. MASSACHUSETTS - Arthur Williams (FSA), Berkshire: Chopping corn. Cloudy, wet weather for making hay. Pumpkins being picked and trucked for selling, as well as all vegetables. Some moisture this week, may help, but is probably too late. No mud for chopping corn - it's great. No killing frosts yet! Paul Russell (FSA), Southeast Massachusetts: Cranberry growers have started harvest, and early varieties harvested for dry fruit have some quality problems. Yields have been normal to slightly below normal. Shellfish growers are having problems shipping their product to New York City because of the September 11th attacks, plus most shellfish is marketed through restaurants and that market is down. Vegetable growers are finishing up harvest with one of their better growing and marketing seasons. Kip Graham (FSA), Worcester: Silage harvesting moving along smoothly. Pumpkins and Winter vegetables at peak. Vegetable fields being cleaned up, preparing for cover crops. Fall weather crept up on us quickly. Still cutting hay where available. Some late sweet corn still standing and ready to be harvested. Apple picking continues. Peach, plum and blueberries nearing end. Frank Caruso (Ext), Plymouth: Cranberries: First water harvesting of red cranberries in addition to continued dry harvesting. There has not been a single frost night that I know of to date, although there was a close call last week. Berries are coloring up very nicely. Size has been disappointing for the early varieties and it looks like the size will be small for the later varieties, also. There has been field rot in some deliveries. David Rose (FSA), Bristol: Most vegetable crops winding down. Demand for fresh sweet corn is over. Corn chopping in full swing. Despite cold and windy weather, corn mazes and hay rides were popular. John Devine (FSA), Franklin: Fall crop harvest continues in Franklin County. Most farms are in the process of concluding the season, but we haven't had a killing frost yet. Activities this week included picking squash, pumpkins, Indian corn, apples and peppers. This has also been a good week to harvest corn or bale hay. Tobacco farmers have started the final activity of "taking down" the crop after curing. Ted Smiarowski, Jr. (FSA), Hampshire/Hampden: Fall harvest is in full swing. Tobacco damp this week caused many growers to take down tobacco. Cover crop applied to many harvested fields. Dairy farmers are applying manure to harvested corn silage fields. Gary Guida, Worcester: Still harvesting sweet corn, all other field crops are finished . Good weekend for farm sales; pumpkins are leading the charge now, with apples not far behind. Visited Los Angeles County, CA - farms, fields, soil and climate are just spectacular. Talk about agriculture! NEW HAMPSHIRE - Bruce Clement (Ext), Cheshire: More rain this week stimulated grass growth and is helping to replenish ground water levels. Silage harvest continues. Smaller farms about done. Larger farms about 70 percent done. Yields are good on the river soils. Apple harvest progressing well. Nice weekend weather boosted sales. Pumpkins and other Fall crops being harvested. Pumpkin size is down. Steve Turaj (Ext), Coos: Temperatures moving downward. Cooler, wetter weather trend with two hard frosts this weekend took out warm season vegetable crops. Field corn harvest proceeding at a good pace. Accompanied John Riff (FSA) in Coos and Carroll Counties to check corn yields. Seeing and recording some of the best field corn yields in some time. Hay still being taken where possible. Some farms will be looking at regrowth alfalfa after frost kill for additional feed. Nice pumpkin/winter squash crop this year. Many roadside displays to market (decorative plants) to 'leaf-peepers' who are up here now. Tom Buob (Ext), Grafton: Corn silage harvest continues between showers. Still dry despite rains. George Hamilton (Ext), Hillsborough: Fruit: Apple harvest is in full swing with most growers concentrating on second picking of McIntosh and Gala apples, working on Cortland, and starting to harvest late maturing varieties like Red Delicious, Macoun, Empire, etc. Fruit size is excellent, but bruising can be a problem. Heavy rain showers caused sizeable number of fruit drops. Fall raspberries and pear harvest continued with peach, plum, and blueberry harvest being completed. Pick-your-own apple operations had a wonderful weekend. Vegetables: Harvesting wide array of vegetables, including warm season vegetables like tomatoes and peppers. Harvesting Winter squash and pumpkins. Good demand for all vegetable continues. Farmers kept busy by starting to pull plastic mulch and tomato stakes, disking fields, cleaning up fields, and planting cover crops. Field Crops: Field corn harvest in full swing. Second and third cuts of hay and haylage continued between showers. Cover crops were being planted in harvested fields. Nada Haddad (Ext), Rockingham: Continued picking apples, pumpkins, winter squash, some vegetables and Fall raspberries. Seeding pastures, hay fields, cover crops. Liming and fertilizing new fields. It rained on Friday for a few hours. Some nights have been quite cold - almost to the freezing point. Pam Marvin (FSA), Sullivan: Many fields getting a third cutting done. Rain last week has helped to keep the fields green. Apple picking is still very busy. Apples look a little smaller than normal, but overall the crop is good. There is an abundance of pumpkins around. Steve Schmidt (FSA), Grafton: We received slightly less than one inch of rain last week. Other areas received more or less, depending on the location. The showers have continued to help green things up; however, at this point, it is pretty much too late to do the crops any good. More rain is needed to help bring back the ground water. Surface water supplies are still very low, and dug wells and shallow drilled wells are still suffering. RHODE ISLAND - Karen Menezes (Ext), Newport: Sweet corn still being harvested, pumpkins look great along with hard squash. Field corn being chopped. Some hay being done. Lots of activity at farm stands. Cool temperatures and some wind in the latter part of the week. Marilu Soileau (FSA), All Counties: Heavy overnight rains on several evenings have caused ready-to-pick apples to fall from the trees. This has been a devastating development after the Spring frost our producers endured at blossom time. The sunny weekend weather saw heavy activity at farm stands throughout the state. Corn silage and apple harvest continues. Cider making is underway, as an assortment of apple varieties are now available. Winter vegetable crops are also being harvested at this time. VERMONT - John St. Onge (FSA), Lamoille: Widespread killing frost occurred on the weekend. In most places it was much later than normal. Corn silage harvest seems to be ahead of average. Yields were good, but highly variable. Good weather conditions for third cut. Pumpkin harvest is much better than last year. Bill Snow (Ext), Orange: Received three inches of rain during the week, which helped to restore water supplies. Some wells that had gone dry started running again. Hauling water gets old fast. No major frosts yet, just light frosts. Looks like real nice color this Fall. Could be peak this coming weekend. Dave Blodgett (NRCS), Orleans: Most of the larger corn growers have finished harvesting. Reported yields have ranged from 16-25 tons per acre. Landowners are finishing third cut hay. Most third cut is light. Two straight nights of killing frost has all but ended the growing season. Rain is still needed to revive some landowners' springs. Lynette Hamilton (FSA), Windham: Silage corn cutting is slowing down, and as you drive around the County you see more of those long white sausages making an imprint on today's farm scene. Apple picking is in full swing with good production. The fields have an orange tinge with the pumpkins ready to be harvested. Fall pastures are turning green, with new growth from the past week's rain and cooler temperatures. Jeff Carter (Ext), Addison: Corn silage harvest nearly complete, some primary tillage with chisel and moldboard plows. Generally good yields for corn crop, ranging to areas with poor to disaster yields. Continued spreading manure on corn stubble fields and third cut hay fields. Third cut hay completed, some excellent fourth cut alfalfa harvested. This year's new-seeded alfalfa and grass fields have good growth. Pasture slow to regrow, but better growth with the cooler nights and rain showers. Things look better than expected for the season. Dennis Kauppila (Ext), Caledonia: Widespread frost expected tonight (Sat night). Got 1.7 inches of rain this week, very welcome. Farmers concentrating on getting corn silage in. Quite a bit of haying, also. Others working on spreading manure. Foliage getting very nice. Sherwin Williams, Rutland: Squash and pumpkins all harvested and in storage. 75 percent of potatoes dug. Great crop. Still picking good sweet corn. Mother Nature has blessed us with no hard frost. Dry beans are all pulled and are in the barn waiting for cold weather to flail out. Nice crop of mature popcorn ready to pick. Lots of gourds, Indian corn and Fall decorating material. Some real fancy and unusual gourds. Reporters are from: Extension Service (Ext), Farm Service Agency(FSA), Natural Resources Conservation Services (NRCS), or other knowledgeable individuals. September 2001 Crop Weather Summary: Dry conditions that began in mid-July persisted into early September. The extended period without rain reduced yields on most crops and diminished ground water supplies at many locations. Regrowth of third crop hay was minimal due to lack of moisture, and by month's end, hay crops were rated as fair or poor across the six state region. Silage corn harvest proceeded at a fast pace during September; 70 percent of the crop was chopped at month's end, compared with 35 percent last year and 45 percent normal. Corn yields were reduced significantly by drought conditions and July's armyworm attack. Rains arrived later in September, but came too late to help corn crop growth in the southernmost States. Potato harvest had advanced past the halfway mark in Maine by the end of September, roughly on schedule with last year and normal. Yields in Maine were variable depending on irrigation availability or where showers fell during the Summer, but quality remained good or excellent at most locations. Farmers harvested the first 25 percent of the potato crop under extremely dry conditions; rainfall later in the month helped soften up the soil somewhat to reduce bruising. Maine oat and barley harvest was nearing completion by month's end, and both crops were reported in good condition. Shade tobacco harvest was wrapped up by mid-month, and farmers in the Connecticut River Valley completed broadleaf tobacco harvest a week later. Tree fruit harvest was active during the month; apple and pear progress had passed the midway point by the last week in September, and peach harvest was complete by the end of the month. Fruit size was below average due to the prolonged dry conditions. Some Massachusetts growers began harvesting white cranberries in early September for the production of a new white cranberry juice; regular harvest got underway around mid-month. The last of Maine's 2001 wild blueberries were harvested the first few days in September; yields were much lower than expected on non- irrigated fields. New England's highbush blueberry crop was all harvested by month's end, with condition ratings from fair to good. As of September 30, temperatures had dipped below freezing in northern and low lying areas, but most of southern New England still awaited the first killing frost. 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: Emily McAllister, Robin Helrich Stat Assistant: Wayne Colpitt Deputy: David Luckenbach 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 ***********************