Weather

Mild, largely dry weather covers much of the Heartland

Across the Corn Belt, mild, mostly dry weather remains nearly ideal for corn and soybean maturation and harvesting.  By October 2, three-quarters (75 percent) of the U.S. corn was fully mature, while 81 percent of the soybeans were dropping leaves.  Isolated showers are just starting to overspread areas west of the Mississippi River.

On the Plains, late-season warmth primarily covers Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas.  Meanwhile, isolated showers accompany the leading edge of slightly cooler air across the northern and central Plains.  By October 2, topsoil moisture was rated at least one-half very short to short in all the region’s states, led by Oklahoma (92 percent very short to short) and Montana (87 percent).  Recently planted winter wheat will soon need soaking rain to ensure uniform emergence.

In the South, cool, dry weather prevails, except for lingering cloudiness and showers near the middle Atlantic Coast.  Producers in the Carolinas and Virginia are waiting for fields to dry before resuming harvest activities.  Meanwhile in Florida, rescue and recovery efforts are ongoing in the hardest-hit areas near Fort Myers; farther inland, fresh-water flooding remains a concern, especially in parts of the Peace and Saint Johns River basins. 

In the West, showers are confined to the southern Rockies.  Warm, dry weather blankets the remainder of the region, with Tuesday’s high temperatures expected to approach or reach 100°F in the Desert Southwest.  In California, the rice harvest was 30 percent complete on October 2, versus the 5-year average of 32 percent.  However, rangeland, pastures, and recently planted winter grains in the Far West are being adversely affected by drought.