Weather

A Winter-like “look & feel” on the Great Plains

   Across the Corn Belt, snow showers and squalls are limited to areas downwind of the Great Lakes. Elsewhere, cold, dry weather is conducive to corn and soybean harvest activities in fields where soils are dry enough to support heavy equipment. On November 4, more than one-quarter of the soybeans remained in the field in Michigan (74% harvested) and Missouri (64% harvested).

On the Plains, cold conditions are in place. An early-season snowfall is occurring in an area broadly centered on Kansas, further delaying harvest activities and halting winter wheat development. On November 4, only 69% of Kansas’ winter wheat had emerged, compared to the 5-year average of 81%. Farther north, Thursday morning’s low temperatures in Montana locally dipped below 0°.

In the South, showery weather continues to slow autumn fieldwork, especially from eastern Texas to the Mississippi Delta and the Tennessee Valley. In contrast, warm weather lingers across Florida, where some dryness has developed. On November 4, Florida’s topsoil moisture was rated 37% very short to short.

In the West, dry weather prevails. However, below-normal temperatures in the Rockies contrast with warm, windy weather in California and environs. In addition, conditions in parts of California are conductive for explosive wildfire expansion due to high winds, low humidity levels, and abundant fuel loads.

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