Texas Crop Progress and Condition

Texas Crop Weather

Issue: TX-CW0909
Released: March 2, 2009
For the week of: February 23 - March 1, 2009

Cooperating Agencies:
   Texas AgriLife Extension Service,
   Texas Department of Agriculture,
   National Weather Service

Maps:
Agricultural District Map

Agricultural Summary: The eastern and southern part of the state received trace amounts of rainfall while the rest of the state observed little to no moisture. Wheat in the High Plains was helped by earlier rainfall but it continues to struggle due to lack of moisture. Cotton field preparation continued in the Northern Plains. Corn field preparation continued in the Northern High Plains. Corn producers continued to plant in the Blacklands and have begun planting in North East Texas, South Central Texas, and the Upper Coast. Spinach and cabbage harvest continued in South Texas. Supplemental feeding of livestock was on going across most of the state. Range and pasture conditions across the state were dry and in need of rain. Top soil moisture was mostly very short to short across the state.

Field Crops Report

Small Grains: Wheat in the High Plains was helped by earlier rainfall but it continues to struggle due to lack of moisture. Winter wheat was breaking dormancy in the Northern Low Plains. Producers in the Cross Timbers were spraying their wheat for green bugs. Wheat in South Texas continued to experience drought conditions. Statewide, wheat condition was mostly very poor to fair and oat condition was mostly very poor to poor.

Cotton: Field preparation continued in the Northern Plains.

Corn: Field preparation continued in the Northern High Plains. Producers have begun planting in the Blacklands and North East Texas. Producers without an irrigation system in South Central Texas were dry planting.

Fruit, Vegetable and Specialty Crop Report

Spinach and cabbage harvest continued in South Texas. Onion yields improved after producers irrigated their fields in South Texas.

Livestock, Pasture and Range Report

Supplemental feeding of livestock was on going across most of the state. Stock tank levels were low in the Cross Timbers. Mild temperatures in North East Texas continued to help livestock maintain condition. Lambing and kidding was active in the Edwards Plateau. Range and pasture conditions across the state were very dry and in need of rain. Range and Pasture condition was mostly very poor to poor statewide.

Crop Progress Table - March 1, 2009
Crop	Stage	2009	2008	Average 2004-2008
Crop	Stage	Percent
Corn	Planted	10	7	5
Sorghum	Planted	3	6	4
Winter Wheat	Emerged	92	100	--

Crop Condition Table - March 1, 2009
Crop	Percent					Index ^1/
Crop	Excellent	Good	Fair	Poor	Very Poor	2009	2008
Wheat	1	9	27	25	38	34	35
Oats	0	2	13	23	62	18	45
Range & Pasture	0	5	22	27	46	--	--
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 - March 1, 2009
Condition	Percent of Acreage, by District *
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
Very Short	71	40	81	80	61	44	5	31	77	86	87	94	57	87	30
Short	24	56	19	18	38	41	48	42	13	14	12	6	30	13	50
Adequate	5	4	0	2	1	15	45	22	10	0	1	0	12	0	20
Surplus	0	0	0	0	0	0	2	5	0	0	0	0	1	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/
National Weather Service Climatic Divisions ^2/	Previous Week Accumulation (Feb 23 - Mar 1)	Month-to-Date Accumulation (February 1 - 28)	Year-to-Date Accumulation (Jan 1 - Mar 1)	Annual Normal (1971 - 2000)	Previous Three Months Percent of Normal (Nov, Dec, Jan)
High Plains	0.00	0.40	0.43	19.64	7
Low Rolling Plains	0.00	0.42	0.51	24.51	4
North Central Texas	0.00	0.72	1.29	35.23	26
East Texas	0.01	1.38	2.55	48.08	46
Trans-Pecos	0.00	0.09	0.09	13.19	6
Edwards Plateau	0.00	0.34	0.45	24.73	7
South Central Texas	0.00	0.33	0.55	36.21	18
Upper Coast	0.01	0.83	1.17	50.31	43
South Texas	0.00	0.15	0.17	24.08	10
Lower Valley	0.00	0.53	0.57	25.43	53
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