Texas Crop Progress and Condition

Texas Crop Weather

Issue: TX-CW0908
Released: February 25, 2008
For the week of: February 18 - 24, 2008

Cooperating Agencies:
   Texas A & M Cooperative Extension,
   Texas Department of Agriculture,
   National Weather Service

Maps:
Agricultural District Map

Agricultural Summary: Scattered showers were observed in the Panhandle and Eastern Texas. Small grains benefitted from the recent showers in the Panhandle and the Blacklands. Field work continued in the Panhandle as cotton producers were preparing their fields for the upcoming planting season. Corn planting was delayed in the Blacklands and South Central Texas due to the recent rainfall. Sorghum planting was underway in the Coastal Bend and the Lower Valley. Soil moisture was mostly very short to short across the state. Eastern Texas received the largest amount of rainfall with 0.10 to 1.5 inches of rainfall. The Panhandle received 0.01 to 1.0 inches of rainfall. The rest of the state observed no rainfall. Livestock continued to be in good shape across the state due to the supplemental feeding of hay and protein. Ranges and pastures continued to be in need of moisture.

Field Crops Report

Small Grains: Small grains benefitted from the recent showers in the Panhandle and the Blacklands. Irrigation continued in many wheat and oat fields across the state due to lack of moisture. Wheat condition was very poor to poor statewide.

Cotton: Field work continued in the Panhandle as cotton producers were preparing their fields for the upcoming planting season. Planting was underway in the Lower Valley.

Corn: Corn planting was delayed in the Blacklands and South Central Texas due to the recent rainfall.

Sorghum: Producers continued to prepare for spring plantings in the Northern Low Plains. Sorghum planting was underway in the Coastal Bend and the Lower Valley.

Fruit, Vegetable and Specialty Crop Report

Ground preparation was in full swing for vegetable plantings in South Central Texas. Spinach, carrot, and cabbage harvest was active in South Texas. Sugarcane, citrus, and vegetable harvest continued in the Lower Valley.

Livestock, Pasture and Range Report

Livestock continued to be in good shape across the state due to the supplemental feeding of hay and protein. Cattle calving was prevalent across most of the state. Ranges and pastures across the state continued to be in need of moisture. Range and pasture condition was poor to fair statewide.

Crop Progress Table - February 24, 2008
Crop	Stage	2008	2007	Average 2003-2007
Crop	Stage	Percent
Corn	Planted	1	--	--
Sorghum	Planted	2	--	--
Winter Wheat	Emerged	96	100	100

Crop Condition Table - February 24, 2008
Crop	Excellent	Good	Fair	Poor	Very Poor	Index ^1/
Crop	Percent					2008	2007
Wheat	1	9	26	33	31	35	68
Range & Pasture	2	18	35	30	15	--	--
1/ The formula for the condition index is I = (5V + 25P + 60F + 90G + 110E)/100 where I = crop condition index and V, P, F, G, E = percentage of crop rated very poor, poor, fair, good, excellent.

Top Soil Moisture by District - February 24, 2008*
Condition	1-N	1-S	2-N	2-S	3	4	5-N	5-S	6	7	8-N	8-S	9	10-N	10-S
Condition	Percent of Acreage
Very Short	59	41	50	51	15	10	0	0	51	58	28	48	0	51	20
Short	36	46	30	31	52	28	10	4	33	31	40	47	6	44	57
Adequate	5	13	20	17	33	55	73	61	16	11	27	5	48	5	23
Surplus	0	0	0	1	0	7	17	35	0	0	5	0	46	0	0
* High Plains: 1-N, 1-S; Low Rolling Plains: 2-N, 2-S; North Central Plains: 3, 4; East Texas: 5-N, 5-S. Trans-Pecos: 6; Edwards Plateau: 7; South Central Texas: 8-N, 8-S; Upper Coast: 9; South Texas: 10-N; Lower Valley: 10-S.

Weather Information Table ^{1/ 2/}
National Weather Service Climatic Divisions	Previous Week (February 18-24) Accumulation	Month-to-Date (February 1 - 24) Accumulation	Year-to-Date (Jan 1 - Feb 24) Accumulation	1961-90 Annual Normal	Previous Three Months (Nov, Dec, Jan) Percent of Normal
High Plains	0.01	0.23	0.23	18.87	57
Low Rolling Plains	0.00	0.28	0.32	23.78	32
North Central Texas	0.00	1.04	1.51	34.00	53
East Texas	0.47	3.29	5.35	45.69	67
Trans-Pecos	0.00	0.00	0.17	12.96	72
Edwards Plateau	0.00	0.14	0.22	24.01	54
South Central Texas	0.17	0.92	2.37	34.48	62
Upper Coast	0.59	1.73	6.34	47.63	88
South Texas	0.00	0.06	0.58	23.49	34
Lower Valley	0.01	0.31	1.88	25.34	59
1/ Average of all stations reporting precipitation data. 2/ High Plains: 1-N, 1-S; Low Rolling Plains: 2-N, 2-S; North Central Texas: 3, 4; East Texas: 5-N, 5-S. Trans-Pecos: 6; Edwards Plateau: 7; South Central Texas: 8-N, 8-S; Upper Coast: 9; South Texas: 10-N; Lower Valley: 10-S.
For more information, please visit the following web sites: www.srh.noaa.gov/rfcshare/precip_analysis_new.php and www.drought.unl.edu/dm/monitor.html