or-crop-weather Oregon Crop Weather Released: May 4, 2009 Week ending: May 3, 2009 OR-CW0509 OREGON CROP WEATHER NATIONAL AGRICULTURAL STATISTICS SERVICE USDA, NASS, Oregon Field Office Phone: 503-326-2131 Released: May 4, 2009 Toll Free: 1-800-338-2157 Week ending: May 3, 2009 Email: nass-or@nass.usda.gov Volume: 06-09 Internet: www.nass.usda.gov/or Weather: Precipitation hit almost all parts of the State due to scattered rain storms, causing conditions to be cooler and damp in comparison to last week. High temperatures ranged from 74 degrees in Salem, down to 53 degrees in Lakeview. Low temperatures ranged from 41 degrees in Portland, down to 19 degrees in Lakeview. All forty three stations reported a measurable amount of precipitation last week. The Grants Pass station reported the most with 1.77 total inches. Field Crops: Some fescues already heading, but there was concern on plant size in south Willamette Valley; growth regulators might not be needed. Further north, growth regulators were starting to be applied to grass seed crops. Crimson clover started to bloom and red clover started to bud. In Klamath County, winter crops were emerging. The continued dry and some grain mites have hurt grain crops in north central Oregon. Other wise conditions there and in much of the State fostered good grain growth. Vegetables: Vegetables grown for seed were off to a good start; however some fields could use more moisture. Growers began to stagger the planting of sweet corn. Cool weather crops such as lettuce, artichokes, asparagus, cabbage, cauliflower, and broccoli were doing well. Fruits and Nuts: Cool, unsettled weather this past week caused some lag in crop development across the State, however noticeable springtime growth was reported. Some vineyards in southwestern areas had to use protection to deter frost damage. Pollination season seemed to go well this year, apples and pears appeared to be in good condition. Most have had their normal spring sprays. Cherry trees in Wasco County were losing blossoms rapidly; weather was favorable during cherry bloom. In Hood River County d'Anjou pears were reported to be post bloom, red delicious apples first to near full bloom and bing cherries full to post bloom. Nurseries and Greenhouses: Nurseries and greenhouses remained busy with new plant starts. Greenhouses continued moving vegetable and ornamental garden starts into sales outlets. Nurseries continued preparing trees and shrubs for sale. Vegetables, seeds, and fruit tree sales were reported as brisk in some areas. Livestock, Range and Pasture: Warmer temperatures have helped pasture growth in most areas. Lake, Union, and Wasco are reporting slow growth, with some livestock still not turned out in Union. Water levels in Wallowa ponds are looking spotty. Livestock are generally looking good across the State. Soil Moisture-Week Ending 05/03/09 ------------------------------------------------------------------ : Very : : : : short : Short : Adequate : Surplus ------------------------------------------------------------------ : Percent : Topsoil : 1 8 84 7 Subsoil : 4 19 66 11 ------------------------------------------------------------------ Crop Progress-Week Ending 05/03/09 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : This : Last : Last : 5 year Crop : week : week : year : average -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Percent : Barley planted : 90 81 90 89 Barley emerged : 69 54 57 67 Spring wheat planted : 85 81 96 93 Spring wheat emerged : 50 41 76 73 : Days suitable for fieldwork : 4.3 6.6 5.6 5.3 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Crop Condition-Week Ending 05/03/09 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Very : : : : Crop : poor : Poor : Fair : Good : Excellent ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Percent : Winter wheat : 0 14 42 37 7 Range and pasture : 1 8 31 50 10 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Western Oregon BENTON/LANE/LINN: Some fescues were already heading, but there was some worry on the size of plant. Growth regulators may not be needed this year. Vegetables grown for seed were off to a good start, but more moisture could be used for some. Irrigation has started on some fields. Winter wheat condition looked good throughout the southern Willamette Valley. Producers were beginning to plant sweet corn with favorable soil conditions for tillage practices. The weather in the Willamette Valley has been unseasonably cool with spotting hail showers during the middle of the week. The grass seed crops have all been fertilized and the spring wheat was up and growing. Row crop farmers have been busy getting their crops in the ground and strawberries were getting ready to bloom. CLACKAMAS: Finally some heat units and spring weather this week after a cool spring so far. Violent weather this past weekend. COLUMBIA: This week's weather consisted of showers with sun breaks. Thursday and Friday were sunny with Saturday bringing strong winds and showers. Dogwood trees were now blooming and honey bees were in the blueberry fields. Rye and winter wheat have grown 3-6 inches. COOS/CURRY: Low temperatures were 4 to 5 degrees below the 5-year average for the week in both Coos and Curry counties. High temperatures through the week were well below average for this time of year in southern Curry but near normal in Coos. Producers were mostly waiting on weather before conducting farming operations. Some additional cattle were moved to the bottoms over the weekend. Bandon (Coos & Northern Curry): Low temperature for the period was 36.84 degrees, 3.91 degrees below the 5-year average. High temperature for the period was 64.8 degrees, 0.65 degrees below the 5-year average. Precipitation for the period was 0.83 inches, compared to a 5-year (including drought in 2004 & 2005) average of 0.36 inches. Precipitation for the current weather year precipitation (began 10/08) stands at 38.31 inches, 13.09 inches below the 5 year average, and 14.54 inches below the long-term historical average. Historical average precipitation through April is 52.85 inches. Brookings (Southern Curry): Low temperature for the period was 38.84 degrees, 4.85 degrees below the 5-year average. High temperature for the period was 59.57 degrees, 10.82 degrees below the 5-year average. Precipitation for the period was 2.05 inches, compared to a 5-year (including drought in 2004 & 2005) average of 0.67 inches. Precipitation for current weather year precipitation (began 10/08) stands at 65.55 inches, 8.97 inches below the 5 year average, and 1.01 inches above the long-term historical average. Historical average precipitation through April is 64.54 inches. DOUGLAS: Pollination season was starting to look like it went well. The stone fruit looked good, apples and pears so far were nice, blueberries looked good, and flowering on strawberries and caneberries beginning with good conditions. More heat could be used as crop development continues to lag behind by about a week. JACKSON: Looked like all planting was complete on spring grain crops. Most of the crops were off to a slow start, with the cool but dry weather we have been having. Apples and pears were all done with the blossom period. Most have had the normal sprayings for codling moth, and other spring sprays. Vineyards were mostly in their blossom stage. They also needed some warmer weather. Vegetable gardeners were getting busy now with plantings. Greenhouses were still busy getting vegetable and ornamental garden starts out to sales outlets. Nurseries were still busy moving out trees and shrubs, but now mostly potted or balled/burlaped. Both nurseries and greenhouses were also busy getting their new starts out and planted for future year's sales. All livestock were now out on good green pastures. Pastures were off to a rather slow start, but should start to look better as we get into warmer days. However, our late spring was slowing down forage growth in the higher elevations. JOSEPHINE: This area received 1.60 inches of rain. Temperatures were mild at 60's during the daytime, and 30's to low 40's at night, accompanied by some wind. Vineyards have been using frost protection in some areas. Cool weather crops such as lettuces, artichokes, asparagus, cabbage, cauliflower, and broccoli were doing well. Livestock were doing well as well with the pastures looking good. Irrigation has also begun. Nursery sales appeared to be brisk especially in vegetables, seeds, and fruit trees. MARION: This week brought a cool, unsettled weather pattern with highs mostly in the 60's, some sun, mostly overcast and some quick storms that produced a lot of rain and wind for short durations. Overall this week brought noticeable springtime growth. Trees had that fresh, leafing look, with some in bloom, berries were getting a lot of growth on the vines and the grass and wheat was growing rapidly. Some needed rain fell in the later part of the week. Cereal leaf beetle adults are out and laying eggs. Some winter wheat flag leaves were showing. Plant growth regulators were starting to be applied to grass seed crops. Crimson clover flowers starting to show up. WASHINGTON: Blueberries were blossoming and field crews spot spraying grass seed fields. Crimson clover was starting bloom, red clover and alfalfa nearing bud stage, wheat nearing boot stage, and field corn planting begun. Early strawberries were also showing blossoms, and grapes were leafing. Sweet corn planted and ready for staggered planting dates. Greenhouse and nurseries are ready to start irrigation on shrubs and small trees, young plants are being covered by bows and plastic. Range pastures were doing much better with warmer weather and a couple warm 50 degree nights. High temperatures 70.2 degrees, low 34 degrees. Humidity 67 percent, low 39 percent, 1 1/4 inches rainfall. Eastern Oregon GRANT/ HARNEY: It has been a cool rainy week. Range grasses were starting to grow and the hay was running out. Some much needed spring precipitation was received during the week. Over an inch of precipitation was received in the Harney Basin. Temperatures were cooler than normal throughout the week. The precipitation will undoubtedly help growing conditions on spring and summer range tremendously. HOOD RIVER: Unsettled weather conditions prevailed through the week. At week's end, crop development in the lower Hood River Valley was as follows: d'Anjou pear at post bloom (WSU stage 8); Red Delicious apple at first bloom to near full bloom (WSU stages 7&8); Bing cherry at full bloom to post bloom (WSU stages 8&9); Pinot noir grape at Eichhorn-Lorenz stages 5 to 7. KLAMATH: We have received intermittent rain throughout the past week and weekend across the County, which has been helpful for non irrigated sites. Spring preparation work continues as did some planting. Winter crops were emerging, and pasture and alfalfa crops were showing some growth. LAKE: Northern portion of the county received precipitation in the form of snow during the middle of the week. We also received a fair amount of precipitation at the end of the week and over the weekend. Irrigation season has started for producers on wells. Cool temperatures have stalled the growth of spring pasture. MALHEUR: High and low temperatures below normal for last week. Dry until Saturday. General showers produced 0.69 inches of rain. April was mostly a cold month and very dry. Malheur County had several storms this weekend (5/2- 5/3). The storms carried heavy rains and a few hail showers. As of the week's end there were no reports of any damage from the hail storms. MORROW: Substantial rain over the weekend. SHERMAN: Continued dry and just discovered winter grain mites in areas may require spraying. Combined with recent cold temperatures (night temperatures down to 12 degrees) the combination of mites and cold has damaged crops. Other than that, it has been good growing weather for grain. Seeding date shows as earlier seeding much better looking than delayed fall seeding. Range getting a nice green up as annual grasses now beginning to take off, however preferred better perennial grass growth would be appreciated. UMATILLA: Onions and potato planting just finished. It has been cool until these past two weeks. Pea planting may have been delayed some. This week average temperatures and some rain. UNION: Pasture and range were slow to grow due to cold weather. Some livestock still not turned out. Received rain/snow on Thursday. WALLOWA: Good moisture this week helped those who had planted spring wheat and fall wheat. Range conditions still looked good and ponds were still spotty as far as water levels go. Cool temperatures throughout most of the week. WASCO: Range land pasture grasses were short and starting to turn brown. There were a few showers recorded. However, Wasco County needs a lot more moisture to improve pastures and all grain crops. Wild ryes along county roads were starting to head out on shorter than normal stems. Cherry trees in The Dalles area were losing their blossoms rapidly. It was too early to assess cherry pollination success. The weather during cherry bloom was very good. Cooler temperatures earlier in the week did not drop to below freezing. It was still too early to determine fruit set, however. Weather data for selected stations in Oregon, Week ending: May 3, 2009 (as of 11:00 am) 1/ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ : : Growing : Last week precip. 4/ : Season cum. precipitation 5/ : Air temperature 2/ : degree days 3/ :-------------------------------------------------------------- Station :-------------------------------:-----------------: Total : : : Total : : Pct. : : Low : High : Avg. :DFN 6/ : Total :DFN 6/ : inches :DFN 6/ :Days 7/: inches :DFN 6/ : normal :Days 7/ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ COASTAL AREAS : Astoria/Clatsop : 39 73 52 +3 18 +4 1.14 0.31 3 52.86 -6.24 89 133 Bandon 8/ : 37 65 51 +1 13 -1 0.83 0.06 5 38.59 -15.27 72 151 Crescent City : 38 61 49 -3 9 -14 1.35 0.57 5 45.26 -14.95 75 104 Florence : 38 69 51 +0 15 +1 1.22 0.24 4 58.99 -9.86 86 123 North Bend : 37 66 51 +0 14 +0 1.34 0.53 6 42.20 -15.82 73 123 Tillamook : 34 73 52 +3 18 +11 0.74 -0.38 4 38.85 -39.61 50 132 WILLAMETTE : VALLEY : Aurora 8/ : 37 72 53 +1 22 -1 1.31 0.75 6 27.78 -8.18 77 126 Corvallis : 33 69 50 -2 15 -6 1.14 0.65 5 23.69 -14.85 61 137 Detroit Lake 8/ : 37 65 48 +3 4 -3 1.65 0.81 6 70.75 10.25 117 139 Eugene : 34 67 51 -2 18 -10 1.64 1.08 6 23.35 -21.30 52 109 Hillsboro : 33 69 51 -2 12 -10 0.97 0.56 3 19.01 -14.29 57 105 McMinnville : 32 72 52 -2 18 -9 0.70 0.21 4 15.86 -23.62 40 101 Portland : 41 71 54 +1 29 -3 1.34 0.85 4 21.25 -10.14 68 124 Salem : 34 74 52 +1 18 -3 0.83 0.35 4 22.43 -12.56 64 108 SW VALLEYS : Grants Pass : 33 71 50 -6 13 -31 1.77 1.46 5 19.63 -9.28 68 94 Medford : 36 70 52 -3 21 -17 1.07 0.83 4 11.16 -5.54 67 77 Roseburg : 35 72 53 -1 23 -12 0.60 0.18 4 21.08 -8.59 71 104 NORTH CENTRAL : Condon : 32 64 45 -3 3 -4 0.91 0.63 5 9.47 -1.33 88 78 Echo 8/ : 29 71 50 -6 13 -30 0.73 0.56 4 6.78 -0.57 92 79 Heppner : 34 66 48 -4 10 -13 0.81 0.49 5 9.36 -1.32 88 78 Hermiston : 31 72 51 -4 16 -27 0.55 0.38 4 5.24 -2.11 71 64 Madras 8/ : 29 61 45 -6 3 -18 1.49 1.35 7 6.31 -1.67 79 69 Moro : 30 66 48 -2 8 -6 0.76 0.62 4 8.83 -0.24 97 69 Parkdale 8/ : 31 63 47 -6 3 -25 0.77 0.49 6 33.63 5.01 118 109 Pendleton : 34 69 48 -6 9 -26 0.85 0.61 4 10.30 0.63 107 76 Prairie City 8/ : 29 61 45 -6 3 -18 1.49 1.35 7 6.31 -1.67 79 69 The Dalles : 35 73 54 +4 32 +11 0.27 0.13 4 11.13 0.58 105 87 SOUTH CENTRAL : Agency Lake 8/ : 27 57 40 -5 - -7 1.18 0.97 3 10.88 -2.56 81 66 Bend : 21 57 41 -6 - -7 0.55 0.41 3 5.28 -3.83 58 39 Burns : 22 59 42 -6 2 -10 1.02 0.84 4 6.20 -0.99 86 65 Christmas Valley 8/ : 20 54 39 -10 - -20 1.46 1.25 7 5.66 -3.77 60 73 Klamath Falls : 27 57 43 -6 - -14 0.72 0.57 3 6.56 -4.55 59 59 Klamath Falls 8/ : 27 58 43 -6 - -14 0.75 0.60 5 7.58 -3.53 68 79 Lakeview : 19 53 41 -6 - -12 0.62 0.34 5 5.97 -6.34 48 78 Lorella 8/ : 20 58 43 -6 - -14 0.44 0.29 5 5.24 -5.87 47 60 Redmond : 25 61 43 -4 3 -8 0.99 0.85 5 4.65 -1.56 75 54 Worden 8/ : 26 58 43 -6 - -14 0.44 0.29 3 4.73 -6.38 43 66 NORTHEAST : Baker City : 21 58 42 -7 - -14 1.28 1.07 4 6.30 -0.51 93 83 Joseph : 29 56 39 -6 - +0 1.07 0.65 6 12.19 -7.20 63 87 La Grande : 28 63 46 -5 3 -18 1.00 0.65 5 8.72 -4.37 67 65 Union : 28 62 45 -4 - -14 0.84 0.49 4 10.44 1.26 114 80 SOUTHEAST : Ontario : 28 68 50 -6 8 -38 1.05 0.91 3 6.87 -0.80 90 50 Rome : 25 63 46 -6 8 -15 0.51 0.30 6 4.39 -1.17 79 56 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1/ Summary based on NWS data. Copyright 2009: AWIS, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 2/ Air temperature in degrees Fahrenheit. 3/ Growing degree days base-50 degrees Fahrenheit. 4/ Precipitation (rain or melted snow/ice) in inches. 5/ Season cumulative precipitation starts September 1, 2008. 6/ DFN=Departure from normal (using 1961-1990 normals period). 7/ Precipitation days = Days with precipitation of 0.01 inch or more. 8/ Agri-Met weather stations.