sc-crop-weather State South Carolina Crop Weather Release Date, Week Ending Date Week Ending August 28, 2005 Issue SC-CW1427 Agricultural Summary A few thundershowers last week helped cooler weather move into most of the State. Crops continued to look good. Corn yields were looking very good for most growers. Peanut, soybean and cotton growers were monitoring fields for larvae and stink bug pests. Overall little disease or insect damage was reported. The cooler temperatures brought some stress relief to livestock and eased the demand for soil moisture. Soil moisture was 1% very short, 11% short, 84% adequate and 4% surplus. There were 6.0 days suitable for fieldwork. Field Crops Report CORN remained in good condition. With 93 percent of the crop matured and 25 percent harvested, yields were looking excellent. Most SOYBEANS had bloomed and 8 percent of the leaves had turned color while the crop itself remained in mostly good condition. COTTON also remained in good shape with 15 percent of bolls opened. SORGHUM had mostly finished heading by week's end with 12 percent of the crop harvested and in good condition. PEANUTS continued in good condition. Eighty-four percent of the TOBACCO crop had been harvested and 25 percent of the stalks destroyed at week's end. Fruits, Vegetables and Specialty Crops Report CANTALOUPE harvesting was completed by week's end, and WATERMELON harvesting was 99 percent completed. PEACHES were 87 percent harvested by week's end. APPLE condition remained fair to mostly good with 12 percent of the crop harvested. Livestock, Pastures and Small Grains Report LIVESTOCK remained in good shape as animals benefitted from cooler temperatures. PASTURE condition declined slightly but remained mostly good overall. Summer HAY harvesting was progressing at a normal pace. Growers started planting WINTER GRAZING. Crop Progress Table ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 5 Yr : 5 Yr Crop Phase 2005 2004 Avg :Crop Phase 2005 2004 Avg ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ --Percent-- --Percent-- Apples Harvested 12 23 20 :Sorghum Turned Color 81 83 81 Cantaloups Harvested 100 100 100 :Sorghum Matured 47 50 47 Corn Matured 93 95 96 :Sorghum Harvested 12 17 18 Corn Harvested 25 44 44 :Soybeans Bloomed 97 97 91 Cotton Squared 99 100 100 :Soybeans Pods Set 72 73 64 Cotton Bolls Set 91 97 94 :Soybeans Turning Color 8 12 10 Cotton Open Bolls 15 19 19 :Sweetpotato Harvested 3 0 5 Other Hay Harvested 97 97 94 :Tobacco Harvested 84 89 84 Peaches Harvested 87 88 92 :Tobacco Stalks Dest. 25 41 36 Peanuts Pegged 99 98 98 :Watermelons Harvested 99 100 100 Sorghum Headed 99 100 96 :Winter Grz. Planted 2 5 4 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Crop Condition Table ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Very Excel- Very Excel- Crop Poor Poor Fair Good lent :Crop Poor Poor Fair Good lent ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ -- Percent -- -- Percent-- Apples 0 10 33 57 0 :Peanuts 0 1 13 71 15 Corn 0 1 15 69 15 :Sorghum 0 1 7 89 3 Cotton 0 3 17 72 8 :Soybeans 0 3 14 68 15 Livestock 0 0 18 77 5 :Sweetpotato 0 0 60 40 0 Pastures 0 2 30 58 10 :Tobacco 0 7 32 55 6 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- South Carolina Weekly Weather Summary for the Week Ending August 28, 2005 Temperatures in the upper 90s to over 100 degrees and severe afternoon thunderstorms started the work week. A frontal boundary pushed through the State on Tuesday and Wednesday helping produce heavy rainfall at many locations with some flooding reported along the coast. Following the frontal passage, cooler and drier conditions prevailed as high pressure dominated the weather into the weekend. Temperatures Friday morning dropped into the mid 60s for many sites making it the coolest morning since late June. The highest official temperature reported was 103 degrees at Orangeburg on August 22. The lowest official temperature reported was 57 degrees at Caesars Head on the morning of August 26. The heaviest 24-hour rainfall reported was 2.52 inches at Charleston Airport on August 24. The average statewide rainfall for the period was 1.3 inches. SOIL: 4-inch depth average soil temperature: Columbia 85 degrees. RIVERS AND SURF: South Carolina river stages were near to below normal. Surf temperatures at Myrtle Beach and Savannah will average around 84 degrees. Precipitation Weekly Jan 1 Deviation Total Total From Avg Greer 0.09 40.0 5.6 Columbia 0.98 36.4 1.7 Orangeburg 2.29 30.6 -3.5 Charlotte, NC 0.50 28.5 -0.7 Augusta, GA 0.04 37.2 5.6 Florence 0.66 33.1 1.5 Myrtle Beach 3.59 21.5 -8.5 Charleston 5.66 33.2 -2.7 Savannah, GA 2.02 32.4 -3.2 Weekly rainfall totals this period ending midnight Sunday. Contact Information Robert A. Graham, Director Jean Besco, IT Specialist Phone: 803-765-5333 E-mail: nass-sc@nass.usda.gov Website: http://www.nass.usda.gov/sc