One of my favorite things that I subscribe to is The Weekly Crop and Weather Report from the Department of Agriculture, Alabama Field Office. It is also called the Crop Progress and Condition Report. Growing up in my beloved Havana Junction, you were almost automatically interested in crops and livestock.
The U.S. Drought Monitor indicated a slight improvement in the drought conditions being experienced this crop season. The area reported as suffering from extreme or exceptional drought conditions decreased 2.3% during the past week.
Here are some numbers:
* 70.5% of Alabama was still suffering from extreme or exceptional drought conditions this week.
* 72.8% ws the story for last week, so that is some improvement.
* 34 weather stations are how many the Agriculture Department uses for their basic report each week.
* 34 is how many stations received measureable rain. That is 100%! And, it has been a rarity so far this year.
* 23 is how many of the 34 stations received over an inch of rain during the past week.
* 5.23 inches fell at Livingston.
* 5.16 inches at Troy.
* 6.65 inches at Mobile Regional Airport is the most in the state. That reduced their deficiency for the year to 9.44 inches.
* 3.61 inches is the current deficit for Geneva, making that station in South Alabama the best there is in the rain department.
* 20.09 inches was the deficiency for Gadsden, even after getting 1.55 inches of rain. It is one of only 2 of the 34 stations with a deficit over 20 inches.
* 20.54 was the deficit for Thorsby, making it the worst in the state.
* 48% of the state was very short on topsoil moisture. That is quite an improvement, because last week at this time it was 68%.
* 48% of the pasture and rangeland was still in very poor condition.
* 31% of the peanut acreage was very poor.
* 37% of cotton was rated very poor.
* 68% of corn acreage was very poor.
NOTES FROM THE COUNTY AGENTS
* Even though most of the state received rain during the past week, most of the corn crop remained in very poor to poor condition. Many of the stands are in too bad of a shape to recover. However, Leonard Kuykendall, Autauga County Extension Agent said that there were some fields of corn that started to fill out ears with the help of the moisture received. Soybean farmers welcomed the rain. The soybean crop was still in very poor or poor condition, but with continued rain, it is expected to improve.
* The majority of Alabama’s cotton crop showed signs of improvement, but remained in mostly very poor or poor condition. Most areas received rain, which is expected to benefit the crop.
* Thomas D. Atkinson in the Madison County office, noted that some producers in the county had cotton stands that were less than 10 inches tall and had begun blooming out the tops.
PASTURE/HAY/LIVESTOCK
* Alabama hay fields and pastures are expected to improve with the past week’s rainfall. Range and pasture conditions showed improvements as 80% were reported as very poor or poor compared to 86% a week ago. Slight improvements were seen in livestock conditions as pastures started to green up and a more nutritious food source was available.
