sc-crop-weather South Carolina Weekly Weather and Crop Progress Report Released: May 21, 2012 Week Ending Date: May 20, 2012 Issue: SC-CW002112 GENERAL Rains intensified with the arrival of heavy thunderstorms during the week ending May 20, 2012. Many counties received multiple inches of rain over the bulk of the week. Severe thunderstorms led to reports of minor flooding and hail damage to wheat and tobacco crops. Temperatures were cooler than average at the beginning of the week but warmed by the weekend. Tropical Storm Alberto became the first named storm of the 2012 season but stayed out to sea off the coast of Charleston. The State average temperature for the period was one degree above normal with 4.7 days suitable for fieldwork. The State average rainfall for the period was 1.9 inches. Soil moisture conditions were greatly improved to 5% very short, 22% short, 69% adequate and 4% surplus. FIELD CROPS CORN had completely emerged with 5% silked by the end of the week. Conditions improved to 3% poor, 33% fair, 57% good and 7% excellent. COTTON planting was 69% complete by the end of the week, four points ahead of the five year average. Sixty-three percent of PEANUTS were planted. SOYBEANS were 47% planted and 33% emerged by Sunday. OATS and WINTER WHEAT were 95% colored and 65% ripe. Five percent of small grains had been harvested. TOBACCO conditions were 1% poor, 42% fair, 52% good and 5% excellent. Eighty-two percent of HAY had been harvested, seven points ahead of last year. OTHER ITEMS OF INTEREST TOMATO conditions improved to 41% fair, 51% good and 8% excellent. Ninety- eight percent of CUCUMBERS and 100% of SNAPBEANS were planted by the end of the week. CANTALOUP and WATERMELON planting was complete by Sunday. PEACH harvest was ahead of schedule with 10% harvested by Sunday. Conditions were 1% poor, 61% fair, 35% good and 3% excellent. PASTURE conditions improved to 1% very poor, 7% poor, 44% fair, 47% good and 1% excellent. LIVESTOCK conditions also improved to 1% very poor, 2% poor, 28% fair, 68% good and 1% excellent. Crop Progress for Week Ending May 20, 2012 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Crop and Stage : 2012 : 2011 :5-Yr Avg :: Crop and Stage : 2012 : 2011 :5-Yr Avg ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Percent :: : Percent : :: : Cantaloup, Planted : 100 99 95 :: Peaches, Harvested : 10 4 2 Corn, Emerged : 100 100 98 :: Peanuts, Planted : 63 49 48 Corn, Silked : 5 0 0 :: Snapbeans, Fresh, Planted : 100 98 99 Cotton, Planted : 69 68 65 :: Soybeans, Planted : 47 48 34 Cucumbers, Fresh, Planted : 98 99 98 :: Soybeans, Emerged : 33 26 18 Cucumbers, Fresh, Harvested : 5 6 2 :: Watermelons, Planted : 100 99 97 Hay, Grain Hay, Harvested : 82 75 79 :: Winter Wheat, Turning Color : 95 78 64 Oats, Turned Color : 95 84 74 :: Winter Wheat, Ripe : 65 22 13 Oats, Ripe : 65 27 22 :: Winter Wheat, Harvested : 5 0 0 Oats, Harvested : 5 6 3 :: : ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Condition for Week Ending May 20, 2012 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Crop :Very Poor: Poor : Fair : Good : Excellent :: Crop :Very Poor: Poor : Fair : Good : Excellent --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Percent :: : Percent : :: : Cantaloup : 0 1 39 60 0 :: Peaches : 0 1 61 35 3 Corn : 0 3 33 57 7 :: Snapbeans : 0 0 52 42 6 Cucumbers : 0 0 52 48 0 :: Tobacco : 0 1 42 52 5 Livestock : 1 2 28 68 1 :: Tomatoes : 0 0 41 51 8 Oats : 1 2 32 61 4 :: Watermelons : 0 1 44 48 7 Pasture : 1 7 44 47 1 :: Winter Wheat : 0 3 35 58 4 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- South Carolina Weekly Weather Summary for the Week Ending May 20, 2012 Monday morning's pre-dawn rainfalls for the Upstate left 4.02 inches at Liberty and 3.80 inches at Pickens. Thunderstorms during the afternoon hours were concentrated over the coastal plain but not before 1.75-inch diameter hail fell over Orangeburg County. Seabreeze forcing along a nearly stationary boundary combined to produce tropical downpours and flooding for Charleston, Georgetown and Horry counties. The Crabtree Swamp gage measured a 24-hour rainfall total of 4.92 inches on Tuesday morning. Afternoon and evening storms in Newberry and Calhoun counties left 1.75-inch diameter hail. The Wilmington National Weather Service confirmed a "downburst" of estimated 70 mph winds four miles southwest of Longs. Winds estimated at 85 mph were observed two miles northeast of Lamar. The McEntire ANG AP received 3.02 inches in Tuesday's rain. Heavy rains developed again on Wednesday for the north coastal locations. The town of Longs reported "waist deep" roadway flooding at the intersection of Highways 9 and 105. Nearly continuous rain fell over Murrells Inlet. A CoCoRaHS volunteer in that area measured 7.58 inches. Localized flooding was observed with road closures, detours and vehicles driven into and abandoned in flooded ditches. At 9:57 p.m., the Jamestown Fire Department reported a four-hour rainfall of 7.00 inches. The excessive rainfall and gusting winds caused losses to the wheat and tobacco crops in Horry County. Daylight arrived on Thursday for the north coast with a landscape of standing water. James Island reported an overnight rainfall of 3.78 inches. Between 1:10 p.m. and 2:19 p.m. (69 minutes), the Florence Regional AP measured 2.19 inches. Flooding on the southwest part of Florence was said to be three feet deep in neighborhoods near Brittany Drive and the Delmae Elementary School. Dillon reported one of the heaviest totals with 4.85 inches. This stretch of daily rainfalls and amounts was the most for South Carolina since the third week of December 2009. Cloudy, breezy weather was observed on Friday with a few light showers. On Saturday afternoon, the 2012 season's first named Atlantic tropical storm formed at a position 140 miles east-southeast of Charleston. The circulation around Tropical Storm Alberto raised windspeeds along the beaches and sent brief rains to portions of the central coast. The CMAN station at Folly Beach recorded north winds gusting to 34 mph on Sunday morning. Drying sunshine on Sunday afternoon sent temperatures to 86 degrees at the Hartsville AP, Columbia and Saluda. At the end of the day, a distant and weakening Tropical Storm Alberto was moving away. The State average temperature for the seven-day period was one degree above normal. The highest official temperature reported was 92 degrees at Edisto Island on May 15. The lowest official temperature reported was 47 degrees at Cedar Creek on May 20. The heaviest official 24-hour rainfall reported was 5.95 inches at Conway ending at 7:00 a.m. on May 15. The State average rainfall for the period was 1.9 inches. SOIL: 4-inch depth soil temperature: Columbia 74 degrees, Charleston 75 degrees. RIVERS AND SURF: South Carolina river stages were near to below normal. Ocean water temperatures at nearby Johnny Mercer Pier in Wrightsville Beach, NC, were reported at 74 degrees. Precipitation --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Location : Total : Total : Deviation : for Week : for 2012 : from Average --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Greer AP : 1.33 14.04 -4.1 Anderson AP : 0.15 12.39 -4.9 Columbia Metro AP : 2.23 12.30 -3.1 Orangeburg AP : 1.05 12.15 -4.0 Charlotte, NC AP : 2.38 14.62 -1.1 Augusta, GA Bush AP : 1.58 8.79 -7.6 Florence AP : 4.19 15.70 1.7 N Myrtle Beach AP : 1.29 10.84 -5.2 Charleston AP : 0.32 11.17 -3.9 Savannah, GA AP : 2.31 13.94 -1.0 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Weekly rainfall totals this period ending midnight Sunday.