sc-crop-weather State South Carolina Crop Weather Release Date, Week Ending Date Week Ending September 11, 2005 Issue SC-CW1429 Agricultural Summary Temperatures remained mostly normal and conditions were sunny and dry last week. Crop conditions across the state were starting to deteriorate due to lack of moisture. With no appreciable precipitation to report for the whole week, timely rains are needed to maintain yield potential. Dry weather continued to provide plenty of time for field activities. There were no significant insect or disease problems to report. Livestock condition remained unchanged. Soil moisture was 12% very short, 31% short and 57% adequate. There were 6.4 days suitable for fieldwork. Field Crops Condition CORN condition fell but remained mostly good. Harvest really picked up last week with 70 percent harvested. SOYBEAN and COTTON producers were busy scouting for larvae and stinkbug pests and applying controls as needed. Plants were starting to wilt during the day under moisture stress. SORGHUM harvest was running slightly behind schedule with 28 percent harvested last week. PEANUT harvest was underway with 5 percent harvested. Many growers are waiting on a rain to soften up the ground before digging. The crop remained in mostly good condition. TOBACCO harvest was wrapping up with 97 percent of the crop harvested and 59 percent of the stalks destroyed at week's end. Fruits, Vegetables and Specialty Crops Report PEACHES were 94 percent harvested by week's end. APPLE condition remained fair to mostly good with 33 percent of the crop harvested. Livestock, Pastures and Small Grains Report LIVESTOCK condition was unchanged from last week. PASTURE condition slipped some last week as precipitation was short in many areas. HAY harvest wrapped up last week, ahead of last year and the five year average. WINTER GRAZINGS continued to be seeded. Crop Progress Table ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 5 Yr : 5 Yr Crop Phase 2005 2004 Avg :Crop Phase 2005 2004 Avg ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ --Percent-- --Percent-- Apples Harvested 33 35 33 :Sorghum Harvested 28 29 33 Corn Matured 99 98 99 :Soybeans Bloomed 99 99 98 Corn Harvested 70 68 71 :Soybeans Pods Set 90 91 84 Cotton Bolls Set 97 99 99 :Soybeans Turning Color 16 17 17 Cotton Open Bolls 38 46 38 :Soybeans Leaves Dropped 3 5 5 Other Hay Harvested 100 99 98 :Sweetpotato Harvested 12 9 13 Peaches Harvested 94 96 98 :Tobacco Harvested 97 95 94 Peanuts Harvested 5 5 9 :Tobacco Stalks Dest. 59 54 59 Sorghum Turned Color 92 94 92 :Winter Grz. Planted 13 14 14 Sorghum Matured 63 65 63 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Crop Condition Table ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Very Excel- Very Excel- Crop Poor Poor Fair Good lent :Crop Poor Poor Fair Good lent ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ -- Percent -- -- Percent-- Apples 0 17 33 50 0 :Peanuts 0 0 12 77 11 Corn 0 1 6 76 17 :Sorghum 0 1 2 95 2 Cotton 0 2 24 70 4 :Soybeans 1 4 26 59 10 Livestock 0 0 16 79 5 :Sweetpotato 0 0 40 60 0 Pastures 0 4 35 55 6 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- South Carolina Weekly Weather Summary for the Week Ending September 11, 2005 The week began with early morning temperatures falling into the 60’s. Days were sunny and dry. A tropical feature developed over the southeast Florida waters Tuesday and combined with high pressure over New England to produce increasing northeast winds over South Carolina. Tropical Storm Ophelia formed on Wednesday morning. A few of the outermost rain bands brushed counties bordering the coast. By the weekend Ophelia was alter- nating her strength between being a minimal hurricane and a tropical storm. On Sunday the circulation center was positioned nearly 250 miles southeast of Charleston with little movement. Gusting winds up to 33 mph at Myrtle Beach were forcing large breakers along the beaches. For the period the state average temperature was one degree below normal. The highest official temperature reported was 93 degrees at Pageland on September 8 and at Orangeburg on September 10. The lowest official temperature reported was 52 degrees at Caesars Head on the morning of September 7 and at Chester on September 9. The heaviest 24-hour rainfall reported was 0.96 inches at Ft. Moultrie ending at 7:00 AM on September 7. The average statewide rainfall for the period was 0.0 inches. SOIL: 4-inch depth average soil temperature: Columbia 79 degrees. RIVERS AND SURF: South Carolina river stages were below normal. Surf temperatures at Myrtle Beach and Savannah will average around 77 degrees. Precipitation Weekly Jan 1 Deviation Total Total From Avg Greer 0.00 40.3 4.1 Columbia 0.00 36.6 -0.2 Orangeburg 0.00 30.6 -6.0 Charlotte, NC 0.00 28.6 -2.3 Augusta, GA 0.00 37.6 4.2 Florence 0.00 33.1 -0.5 Myrtle Beach 0.00 21.5 -11.2 Charleston 0.03 33.2 -5.8 Savannah, GA 0.00 33.1 -5.3 Weekly rainfall totals this period ending midnight Sunday. Contact Information: Robert A. Graham, Director Jim Johnson, Agricultural Statistician Phone: 803-765-5333 E-mail: nass-sc@nass.usda.gov Website: http://www.nass.usda.gov/sc