Ag Weather Forum

USDA September Weather Review

Bryce Anderson
By  Bryce Anderson , Ag Meteorologist Emeritus
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Following is USDA's report on crop weather for the month of September--as contained in the October production report Friday October 11. It has both sides--from the very-high crop ratings in the Corn Belt to drought impact on pastures in the Far West.

Bryce

Twitter @BAndersonDTN

September Weather Summary

September featured highly variable precipitation and rapidly fluctuating temperatures. In the Corn Belt alone, a cold snap led to widespread frost across the upper Midwest from September 11-13, but largely spared late-developing corn and soybeans. Following the cool spell, an extended period of late-season Midwestern warmth promoted summer crop maturation. Most of the upper Midwest experienced beneficial dryness, but heavy rain in the southern Corn Belt slowed early-season harvest efforts. Regardless of the weather extremes, Midwestern crop conditions remained near historic highs, with nearly three-quarters of the corn (74 percent) and soybeans (73 percent) rated in good to excellent condition by October 5. Those numbers represented the highest United States corn and soybean ratings in October since 2004 and 1994, respectively.

Meanwhile, a band of September dryness stretched from the southeastern Plains and Mid-South into the Northeast. The mostly dry weather favored summer crop maturation and harvesting, but increased stress on pastures and reduced topsoil moisture for the establishment of newly planted winter grains. Across the Deep South, however, heavy rain hampered fieldwork in several areas, including southern Texas and the southern Atlantic coastal plain.

Heavy September rain also soaked portions of the southern High Plains and the Southwest, in part due to moisture associated with the remnants of eastern Pacific Hurricanes Norbert and Odile. Substantial precipitation fell in other parts of the West, including the Great Basin and Intermountain region, providing some drought relief. However, warm, mostly dry weather persisted in central and southern California and portions of the interior Northwest. By October 5, at least one-third of the rangeland and pastures were rated in very poor to poor condition in California (70 percent), Oregon (48 percent), Nevada (40 percent), and Washington (34 percent).

(ES/AG/CZ)

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