United States Department of Agriculture
National Agricultural Statistics Service
Weekly Crop & Weather Roundup
	
Cooperating with the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture
2301 N Cameron St, Rm G-19 · Harrisburg, PA  17110
(717) 787-3904 · (717) 782-4011 FAX · www.nass.usda.gov

Week Ending September 14, 2008	Issued weekly, April-November	Released September 15, 2008, 4 pm	
This report can be found on the Internet at www.nass.usda.gov/pa and click on “Pennsylvania Publications.”	

Fair week for Field Work: The rain did not allow farmers to get out into the fields as much last week as the previous weeks.  A total of four days were suitable for field work last week.  Principal farm activities included mowing weeds, making hay, fall plowing, spreading manure and lime, planting alfalfa, barley and wheat, picking fruit, as well as harvesting corn, tobacco, and potatoes.  Farmers are also continuing fall plowing, as fall plowing is now 24 percent complete.  

PA Topsoil Moisture for Week Ending September 14, 2008
Very Short	Short	Adequate	Surplus	
Percent
12	Percent
21	Percent
63	Percent
4	

Crops: Last week’s rains did not seem to significantly improve crop conditions in Pennsylvania.  Corn condition was estimated at 64 percent good or excellent, compared with 63% last week.  Fourteen percent of the corn is estimated as poor or very poor.  The state’s corn is 94% at the dough stage, 70% dented, 32% mature, and 12% harvested, compared with the five year average of 94%, 76%, 36% and 8% respectively.  Soybean condition declined slightly, as 65% of the soybeans were rated as good or excellent.  This is compared with last week’s 67 percent.   Winter wheat planting has begun, and is 6% completed.  Corn silage harvest continues and is 55% completed.  Barley planting is also going on in Pennsylvania and is 17% complete.  The potato harvest is estimated to be 38% complete.  The tobacco harvest is 86% harvested.    The fourth cutting of alfalfa continued and is 62% complete.    Hay quality  declined last week, as 63 percent of the hay made was of good or excellent quality, with 3 percent rated as poor or very poor.  The peach harvest is nearly completed and is now 98 percent completed, which is 2 points above the five year average.  The apple condition improved and is estimated at 72 percent good or excellent.  The apple harvest is 36% complete, compared with last year’s 51% and the average of 42%.

Livestock: Only 19 percent of the state’s pastures were estimated to be in good or excellent condition, which is 3 points lower than last week.  Forty-one percent of the pastures were rated as poor or very poor, compared to last week’s 48 percent.  Overall, the state’s pasture condition was estimated as follows: 13% very poor, 28% poor, 40% fair, 15% good, and 4% excellent.

U.S. as of September 7, 2008:  Hurricane Gustav and Tropical Storm Hanna became the fourth and fifth consecutive named Atlantic Basin storms to make landfall in the U.S., following Hurricane Dolly (July 23 in Texas), Tropical Storm Edouard (August 5 in Texas), and Tropical Storm Fay (four Florida landfalls from August 18-23).  On September 1, Gustav reached the Gulf Coast just south of Houma, LA, as a category 2 hurricane with maximum sustained winds near 110 m.p.h. Gustav cut through a portion of Louisiana's sugarcane region, which typically accounts for about half of the nation's sugarcane acreage and about 40 percent of production.  The majority of sorghum and nearly half of the rice in Louisiana were already harvested at the time of Gustav's landfall.  In the Delta and neighboring areas, cotton bolls that were opening were buffeted by gusty winds and soaked by heavy rain.  Later, Hanna reached the Atlantic Coast near the South Carolina-North Carolina border early on September 6 with maximum sustained winds near 70 M.P.H. Cotton bolls were just starting to open in the Southeast, helping to reduce the threat of significant harm to the crop.  From September 5-7, Hanna produced gusty winds and dropped as much as 2 to 8 inches of rain from the eastern Carolinas into southern New England.  Although Hanna departed quickly, reaching coastal New England by early September 7, Gustav's remnant circulation lingered across the Mid-South on September 2-3 before finally crossing the central Corn Belt on September 4.  Local rainfall totals as high as 10 to 20 inches drenched Louisiana and Arkansas and the southwestern half of Mississippi, causing extensive flooding.  Much of Missouri received 4 to 6 inches of rain, while widespread 2- to 4-inch totals were reported in Illinois and Michigan.  In Gustav's wake, late-developing crops in the central Corn Belt benefited from the boost in topsoil moisture.  However, much of the eastern Corn Belt and the upper Mississippi Valley remained unfavorably dry.  Farther west, widespread showers on the Plains slowed fieldwork but continued to boost moisture reserves in preparation for the upcoming winter wheat establishment season.  

In addition, unusually cool weather prevailed on the Plains.  Weekly temperatures averaged at least 10 degrees F below normal across parts of the northern Plains, where readings near the freezing mark (32 degrees F) were reported on September 2-3.  Elsewhere, cool weather lingered early in the week across the West, followed by a rapid warming trend.  From September 3-7, readings above 100 degrees F were common as far north as California's Sacramento Valley.  Following an early-week round of briefly heavy showers across the Intermountain West, dry weather in most areas from the Rockies westward promoted fieldwork and summer crop maturation.

Corn:  Portions of the northern Great Plains and Middle Mississippi Valley received significant rainfall during the week.  Temperatures in the Corn Belt remained cooler than normal west of the Mississippi and warmer than normal eastward.  Corn acreage at or beyond the dough stage reached 91 percent, 7 points behind last year and 5 points behind normal.  In Colorado, Michigan, and Pennsylvania, progress remained 15, 3, and 3 points ahead of the 5-year average.  Elsewhere, development was at or behind the normal pace. Development to the dough stage was complete in North Carolina and Tennessee. Sixty-two percent of the acreage reached the dent stage, 25 points behind last year and 17 points behind the 5-year average.  Acreage was reaching the dent stage behind the average in all States except Colorado and Michigan.  In the central Corn Belt and North Dakota, development to the dent stage was furthest behind.  Eleven percent of the corn crop was mature, 27 points behind last year and 17 points behind the 5-year average.  Corn condition was rated 61 percent good to excellent, the same as last week. 

Soybeans:  Temperatures were up to 8 degrees Fahrenheit cooler than average east of the Mississippi, while to the west, temperatures reached up to 4 degrees warmer than the average.  Precipitation received across much of the major soybean-producing area ranged from a half-inch to four inches; however, larger amounts fell in the Delta.  Condition of the crop was rated 57 percent good to excellent, the same as the previous week.

Weather Data For Week Ending September 14, 2008	
Station	Last Week Weather Summary	April 1 - September 14, 2008	
	Temperature	Precipitation	Precipitation	GDD Base 50F	Base 40F	
	High	Low	Average	DFN	Total	Days	Total	DFN	Days	Total	DFN	Total	
Northwest
Erie
Franklin
Meadville
Mercer
Springboro
Warren

North Central
Bradford Region
Emporium
Kane
Laporte
Lock Haven
Port Allegany
Renovo
Ridgway
Stevenson Dam
Towanda
Wellsboro
Williamsport

Northeast
Hawley
Wilkes-Barre/Sc
Susquehanna

West Central
Butler
New Castle
Slippery Rock

Central
Altoona/Blair
DuBois
Lewistown
Middletown
Prince Gallitzi
Selinsgrove
State College

East Central
Allentown-Bethel
Lehighton
Matamoras
Mt_Pocono

Southwest
Pittsburgh/Alle
Derry
Myersdale
Mount Pleasant
Pittsburgh Intl
Connellsville
Waynesburg

South Central
Biglerville
Everett
Hanover
Harrisburg_AP
South Mountain
York

Southeast
Green Lane
Hamburg
West_Chester
Lancaster
Neshaminy Falls
New Holland
Philadelphia
Philadelphia NE
Reading
Valley Forge Na
Willow Grove	
80
79
74
79
75
78

71
77
74
72
82
75
78
76
80
79
75
80

80
78
76

81
87
79

78
75
82
82
79
82
80

83
80
79
74

81
80
78
81
80
84
83

83
80
84
83
78
83

83
83
84
82
90
84
84
87
85
84
83	
50
44
46
45
40
45

35
44
38
47
49
41
47
43
46
47
41
51

46
50
45

42
44
43

45
43
50
56
45
51
49

51
53
51
46

50
48
47
47
45
52
48

56
47
56
54
49
52

55
54
52
55
52
54
59
56
54
55
55	
67
63
63
64
61
63

59
63
58
60
65
60
63
61
64
63
59
68

62
66
62

63
66
63

66
63
66
71
64
66
65

68
66
65
63

68
65
62
65
67
68
66

69
64
69
70
64
69

68
68
68
69
69
68
73
73
70
69
70	
3
0
1
1
-5
0

1
3
0
-3
3
2
-1
1
5
1
0
3

2
3
3

-2
3
1

2
2
1
4
3
2
2

3
2
2
5

4
2
-3
3
3
3
2

2
0
2
3
0
2

4
5
0
3
4
3
4
4
5
1
4	
1.55
1.60
2.02
1.92
1.42
1.28

1.29
1.41
1.71
1.69
1.61
0.88
1.34
1.20
0.99
0.87
0.66
1.74

1.42
1.93
2.04

1.94
2.41
3.37

2.30
1.44
3.37
1.22
3.19
1.56
2.72

1.36
1.54
1.50
2.10

1.43
2.24
1.69
2.35
1.68
2.70
1.48

1.21
2.04
1.42
1.21
2.46
0.90

1.89
1.74
2.25
1.81
1.38
2.05
1.07
1.16
1.68
1.49
1.65	
5
5
6
5
5
3

6
4
5
5
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4

3
3
4

5
5
5

5
5
5
2
5
4
5

3
2
3
4

5
5
5
5
5
5
5

3
4
2
3
4
2

2
3
3
2
3
2
2
2
2
4
2	
18.40
21.83
20.41
22.63
26.00
22.62

20.84
18.27
21.27
23.90
17.70
16.64
17.98
20.15
16.21
20.00
17.60
20.01

20.95
18.75
22.22

17.30
18.91
22.63

19.09
21.15
22.58
20.60
22.83
19.16
19.60

20.96
19.21
20.52
19.67

18.87
25.06
25.65
23.54
19.60
26.54
24.01

24.69
23.97
24.43
17.12
29.61
27.31

26.00
19.15
22.05
20.76
20.81
23.58
18.55
16.69
18.55
24.58
20.06	
-2.01
-0.97
-2.30
0.96
5.98
-0.19

-2.00
-4.33
-1.93
2.87
-3.02
-4.93
-2.74
-2.58
-6.52
2.53
0.05
-0.39

1.06
-0.57
1.02

-4.32
-0.74
1.60

0.38
-0.57
2.41
0.65
-1.28
-1.70
0.68

-0.91
-2.49
-1.42
-3.64

-1.13
4.19
2.96
-0.20
0.77
4.28
3.36

5.99
5.77
5.73
-2.83
10.90
7.12

4.81
-5.24
-0.90
-0.59
-3.79
2.23
-2.32
-4.18
-4.26
2.46
-4.54	
72
81
77
84
79
81

94
83
79
84
71
80
69
79
71
73
81
72

67
70
82

89
80
73

80
88
70
59
74
66
68

58
69
72
77

70
83
76
75
71
80
67

62
69
66
49
78
67

66
63
53
59
53
59
51
56
63
60
61	
2,651
2,265
2,261
2,229
2,065
2,154

1,633
2,181
1,609
1,929
2,487
1,802
2,403
1,798
2,246
2,239
1,778
2,714

2,058
2,538
2,146

2,194
2,551
2,214

2,434
2,129
2,613
3,117
2,018
2,541
2,575

2,745
2,489
2,285
1,956

2,736
2,355
1,774
2,321
2,677
2,637
2,371

2,830
2,240
2,799
3,041
2,227
2,827

2,867
2,883
2,773
2,784
2,876
2,935
3,422
3,532
3,007
2,764
3,067	
361
125
299
110
-198
78

118
473
123
-197
234
133
150
90
538
97
167
230

218
181
397

-23
333
217

74
81
25
200
116
117
243

75
-90
-48
350

365
114
-433
317
196
111
69

-19
-110
-50
117
-126
-8

314
545
-57
87
211
238
333
443
354
-231
402	
4,209
3,822
3,817
3,793
3,594
3,679

3,081
3,720
3,058
3,428
4,072
3,283
3,979
3,293
3,790
3,782
3,258
4,323

3,570
4,100
3,682

3,770
4,147
3,811

4,006
3,654
4,193
4,741
3,551
4,120
4,158

4,335
4,064
3,819
3,451

4,350
3,941
3,283
3,920
4,289
4,250
3,971

4,433
3,802
4,397
4,668
3,777
4,446

4,477
4,493
4,370
4,387
4,488
4,545
5,067
5,180
4,619
4,382
4,691	
	DFN = Departure from normal (using 1961-90 normals period).
	Precipitation (rainfall or melted snow or ice) and pan evaporation in inches.
	Precipitation days = days with precipitation of .01 inch or more.
	Air temperatures in degrees fahrenheit.
	Copyright 2004:  Agricultural Weather Information Service, Inc.  All rights reserved.	

Internet Reporters Comments, By County:

Reporters are from Extension Service (Ext), Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), Farm Service Agency (FSA), Conservation District (CD), farmers, commodity specialists, or other knowledgeable individuals.

   

ADAMS COUNTY, Judy A Behney (FSA) - Adams County had a nice week of weather conditions. Monday started off with temperatures in the 80's.  Tuesday received a thunderstorm in the morning with 1/2 inch of rainfall.  Wednesday was sunny, with temperatures in the 70's.  Thursday was cloudy with temperatures in the 70's.  Friday morning was in the 60's with some sporadic showers, with Friday afternoon having more steady rainfall. Most areas received 3/4 inch of rainfall on Friday.  Saturday was in the 80's.  Some parts of the county had rainfall.  Sunday was one of the hottest days of the summer, with temperatures into the 90's and humid. Corn continues to mature. Some early corn has been cut for silage, but most corn now is still too green because of the recent rainfall. Crop insurance adjusters are appraising corn throughout the county. Soybeans continue to mature, with their conditions not looking too bad, but some are still pretty short. Haylage continues to be chopped, with some dry hay being baled. Pastures are greening up a little, but are still short due to earlier dryness.  Wheat and barley are being seeded as soil conditions and weather permit. Peach harvest is just about completed, with nice yields being reported. Apples continue to be harvested, with most producers starting to pick for processors. Pumpkins and late planted sweet corn are also being harvested. Overall the crops are doing better because of the recent rainfall.

ADAMS COUNTY, Lee Showalter - Most of the south central Pennsylvania fruit areas received .75 to 1.25" of rain this past Friday. The apple harvest continues, with Gala and Honeycrisp harvest nearly concluded. Golden Delicious apples for processing are actively being harvested, with fresh market golds to be harvested this week. Brix levels continue to improve.  The coloring on red varieties was helped by the cool nights and bright sunny days.  Most red varieties are showing very good to excellent color at this time.

BUCKS COUNTY, Michael Fournier (EXT) - Significant rain fell on Friday, which was the second good rain in as many weekends.  Too bad it didn't come earlier to help the corn. Corn silage is progressing nicely, and will be ending soon.  Some early corn is near ready for the combine, but will probably take advantage of some "solar drying" before getting picked. Recent rains have helped the soybeans and pastures, and will provide adequate soil moisture for planting small grains.

CAMBRIA COUNTY, Dolly Little (FSA) - The county had heavy showers on Tuesday and Friday.  There were little showers off and on all day on Saturday. The county needed rain.

CENTRE COUNTY, Dick Decker - Some good rainfall occurred during the week.  There was 3.5 inches in my gauge.

DAUPHIN COUNTY, Paul H. Craig (EXT) - It is amazing what 4.3 - 5.4 inches of rain in a week can do to green things up.  It is too late to benefit the grain crops.  Corn and beans are shutting down development.  The hope for high yields in July won't be reached.  The late summer drought has had a significant impact. Some earlier beans are ready for cutting, with others soon to follow. Corn silage harvest will be completed this week.  Many producers are busy with manure hauling and planting cover crops.

ERIE (FSA) Nancy Lewis - The sunny and breezy days permitted harvesting of hay. Corn is just starting to be chopped for silage. Fall vegetables are experiencing some mildew due to past heavy rains. A rainy weekend is expected.

FOREST COUNTY, Thomas Tanner (FSA) - Many acres of 3rd and 4th crop hay have been harvested.  Most of the livestock farmers have plenty of hay.  Some farmers are cleaning out animal waste facilities.  Soybeans and corn crop appear to be in good to excellent conditions. Rain is in the forecast for the weekend.

FRANKLIN COUNTY, Thomas Kerr - Much appreciated showers this week are helping the fall planted grasses, early wheat, and barley get established. Corn silage harvest, alfalfa hay making, and fall seeding of grasses and barley were the major field operations for the week. Pastures are now recovering from the recent rains. Peach crop conditions varied throughout the county due to weather varying weather conditions. Apple harvest is underway.

LANCASTER COUNTY, Burell Whitworth Jr. (NRCS) - Rain came again this past week. It slowed harvest a little. Harvesting silage and planting cover crops were the main activities last week.

POTTER COUNTY, David Stratton (FSA) - Last week was another very dry week in the region.  Haymaking, bean harvesting, and sweet corn harvesting were some of the activities last week. Corn silage harvesting will be starting soon.

SNYDER COUNTY, William C. Sheaffer - Since last Saturday; prior to Hanna, we have had three inches of rainfall. Recent precipitation has made a dramatic improvement on the crops; especially, the corn and soybeans.  The main activities for the week were making silage, spreading lime and making preparations for the seeding of winter grain.

WESTMORELAND COUNTY, John Lohr (FSA) - Most of the county received about 2 inches of much-needed rainfall last week. The moisture should still benefit some of the later-planted corn and soybeans, late alfalfa cuttings, and pastures. Initial corn silage harvest reports indicate reduced yields.

PA Crop Progress for Week Ending September 14, 2008	
Crop	Current Week	Last Year	5-Year Average	
	Percent	Percent	Percent	
Fall plowing
Corn, dough
Corn, dent
Corn, mature
Corn, harvested
Corn silage, harvested
Barley, planted
Wheat, planted
Tobacco, harvested
Potatoes, harvested
Alfalfa, 4th cutting
Peaches, harvested
Apples, harvested	24
94
70
32
12
55
17
6
86
38
62
98
36	32
98
81
48
10
54
10
7
80
25
45
99
51	26
94
76
36
8
48
15
6
81
41
36
96
42	

PA Crop Condition for Week Ending September 14, 2008	
Crop	Very Poor	Poor	Fair	Good	Excellent	
	Percent	Percent	Percent	Percent	Percent	
Corn
Soybeans
Quality of hay made
Pasture
Apples	1
1
2
13
0	13
8
1
28
3	22
26
34
40
25	45
53
51
15
50	19
12
12
4
22