sc-crop-weather South Carolina Weekly Weather and Crop Progress Report Released: September 10, 2012 Week Ending Date: September 9, 2012 Issue: SC-CW003712 GENERAL Rainfall continued to cover most of the State during the week. There were only scattered areas mainly along the coast and in the Upstate that were drier than the previous week. Crops remained in mostly good condition with yield potential looking very good. South Carolina soil moisture conditions were 1% very short, 9% short, 84% adequate, and 6% surplus. There was a State average of 5.7 days that were suitable for fieldwork. FIELD CROPS CORN harvest continued, but slowed as some farmers were looking at wet fields. Harvest was behind last year, but still ahead of the five-year average. COTTON bolls were 96% set, with 28% of the bolls having opened. Conditions improved slightly to 2% poor, 21% fair, 65% good, and 12% excellent. PEANUTS harvest has begun. Conditions were at 2% poor, 23% fair, 64% good and 11% excellent. Ninety-one percent of SOYBEANS had bloomed, remaining behind last year and the five-year average. Seventy-four percent of the crop had set pods, also behind last year, and the five-year average. Conditions were at 3% poor, 25% fair, 62% good, and 10% excellent. TOBACCO harvest was 93% complete by the beginning of the week with 65% of the stalks having been destroyed. The HAY crop for this year has been harvested. OTHER ITEMS OF INTEREST PASTURE conditions changed very little over the past week and were at 2% poor, 21% fair, 70% good, and 7% excellent. LIVESTOCK conditions also were marginally different from the previous week and were 2% poor, 18% fair, 74% good, and 6% excellent. Crop Progress for Week Ending September 9, 2012 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Crop and Stage : 2012 : 2011 :5-Yr Avg :: Crop and Stage : 2012 : 2011 :5-Yr Avg ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Percent :: : Percent : :: : Corn, Harvested : 79 86 75 :: Soybeans, Pods Set : 74 86 88 Cotton, Bolls Set : 96 98 99 :: Soybeans, Turned Color : 6 2 7 Cotton, Bolls Opened : 28 54 41 :: Tobacco, Harvested : 93 92 92 Hay, Other Hay, Harvested : 100 100 99 :: Tobacco, Stalks Destroyed : 65 48 51 Soybeans, Bloomed : 91 96 99 :: : ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Condition for Week Ending September 9, 2012 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Crop :Very Poor: Poor : Fair : Good : Excellent :: Crop :Very Poor: Poor : Fair : Good : Excellent --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- : Percent :: : Percent : :: : Cotton : 0 2 21 65 12 :: Peanuts : 0 2 23 64 11 Livestock : 0 2 18 74 6 :: Soybeans : 0 3 25 62 10 Pasture : 0 2 21 70 7 :: : --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- South Carolina Weekly Weather Summary for the Week Ending September 9, 2012 More summer heat, high humidity and scattered storms were observed through most of the work week. The Georgetown AP recorded 96 degrees on Monday. Thundershowers over the Upstate left 2.21 inches of rain at Jocassee and 1.54 inches at Fountain Inn. It was 95 degrees at Darlington on Tuesday afternoon. A cluster of storms over York and Lancaster counties brought Lake Wylie 1.69 inches of rain and Catawba 1.34 inches. More cloudiness on Wednesday limited the afternoon convection. Scattered thundershowers on Thursday night developed over the north Midlands leaving 2.34 inches of rain at Longtown. A CoCoRaHS volunteer in Camden measured 1.91 inches. Hardeeville and Pinopolis warmed to 93 degrees on Friday under partly sunny skies. A long-awaited change to drier, cooler air approached the state on Saturday, but not before Florence and Beaufort noted 92 degrees. The fall-like boundary produced widespread thunderstorms as it collided with the outgoing tropical air. Some of the heavier 24-hour rainfall amounts included 2.47 inches at Mullins, 2.12 inches at Gallivants Ferry, 2.02 inches at Gaffney and 1.90 inches at Darlington. On Sunday morning, Marion, Lugoff and McCormick cooled to 66 degrees. Light northerly winds kept the Sunday high temperature at Table Rock, Greenwood and Conway to an arid 80 degrees. The state average temperature for the period was four degrees above normal.* The highest official temperature reported was 97 degrees at Sullivan's Island on September 7. The lowest official temperature reported was 53 degrees at Caesars Head on September 9. The heaviest official 24-hour rainfall reported was 2.60 inches at Georgetown AP ending at 7:00 a.m. on September 8. The state average rainfall for the period was 1.3 inches. SOIL: 4-inch depth soil temperature: Columbia 80 degrees, Charleston 82 degrees. RIVERS AND SURF: South Carolina river stages were near normal. Ocean water temperatures at Springmaid Pier Myrtle Beach were reported at 83 degrees. *Late reports from the unmanned, automated rainfall recordings made at Mount Pleasant Regional AP for August 2012, indicated a total of 20.16 inches. This is the state's second heaviest August total behind the 20.49 inches at Long Creek in 1940. Precipitation --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Location : Total : Total : Deviation : for Week : for 2012 : from Average --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Greer AP : 1.30 28.38 -5.2 Anderson AP : 1.27 30.47 -0.2 Columbia Metro AP : 0.51 35.08 2.0 Orangeburg AP : 3.22 34.41 -0.2 Charlotte, NC AP : 2.60 26.41 -3.2 Augusta, GA Bush AP : 0.55 27.72 -4.1 Florence AP : 2.13 33.07 1.4 N Myrtle Beach AP : 0.00 30.47 -7.1 Charleston AP : 0.95 36.08 -1.7 Savannah, GA AP : 1.11 34.92 -1.0 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Weekly rainfall totals this period ending midnight Sunday.