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State drought mostly spares Floyd County area, northeast

Drought

By Bob Steenson, bsteenson@charlescitypress.com

Parts of Iowa are in drought conditions ranging from moderate to extreme, but Floyd County is currently listed as not affected on average.

The weekly drought report is released by the National Drought Mitigation Center, including the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and located at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

The latest report shows areas in southcentral Iowa abnormally dry to extreme drought, with virtually the entire western two-thirds of the state impacted in some way.

Much-needed rain fell throughout the state last week and this week, helping improve the situation somewhat, according to the weekly Iowa Crop Progress and Condition Report from the USDA.

Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey said, “Most of the state has seen some needed rain in the past week, but unfortunately it may be too little and too late for parts of south central and southeast Iowa that have already seen significant crop damage due to drought.”

The northeast corner of the state, along a diagonal line running from Winnebago County down through Muscatine County, is listed as not affected by drought, other than a portion of Winneshiek and Allamakee counties in far northeast Iowa.

“Moderate drought expanded in southwestern and far northeastern Iowa, reflecting dryness over the past four months or so,” the Drought Mitigation Center report said. “Louisa County in southeast Iowa is a bit drier and moderate drought is now apparent in part of Wright and Franklin County in north central Iowa.”

Northey said, “Hopefully the rains and cool weather are helping boost corn and bean yields in parts of the state that have received some moisture throughout the growing season.”

The statewide crop condition as of the start of this week was rated 12 percent very poor or poor, 27 percent good and 61 percent good to excellent for corn, and 14 percent very poor to poor, 28 percent fair and 58 percent good to excellent for soybeans.

Most corn, soybean, hay and alfalfa conditions in the northcentral part of the state that includes Floyd County are running behind last year but are ahead of the five-year average.

Statewide, 78 percent of the corn crop was in or beyond the dough stage, one week behind last year, according to the weekly crop report. Twenty-one percent of the corn crop has reached the dent stage, one week behind last year and five days behind the five-year average.

Sixty-one percent of the corn crop was rated in good to excellent condition.

Eighty-eight percent of soybeans were setting pods, four days behind last year but equal to average. Soybean condition improved slightly to 58 percent good to excellent. Almost all the oat crop for grain or seed has been harvested.

“Livestock conditions have been ideal with the cooler temperatures,” the Crop Report said. “However, available water supplies in ponds and creeks remains an issue for some producers and supplemental feeding has been required.”

Harry Hillaker, the state climatologist, said rainfall last week was more widespread and frequent than in recent week.

“The statewide average rainfall was 1.35 inches, while normal for the week is 0.97 inches,” Hillaker said. Temperature extremes ranged from afternoon highs of 92 degrees at Donnellson on Tuesday, Aug. 15, and at Osceola on Saturday to a Saturday morning low of 49 degrees at Cresco.

Temperatures for the week as a whole averaged two to three degrees below normal across northeast Iowa to about one degree above normal over the far south.

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