sc-crop-weather State South Carolina Crop Weather Release Date, Week Ending Date Week Ending August 8, 2004 Issue SC-CW1422 Agricultural Summary Tropical storm Alex was located just southeast of the State early last week causing substantial rains in the low country. Bishopville reported some flash flooding due to heavy rains from the storm. High humidity and very hot temperatures followed the storm but as the skies cleared and Alex moved away from our coast, high pressure moved in and a beautiful weekend with fall-like temperatures shaped up. Some areas of the State are still in need of more rain as some spots have only received scattered showers. The state average temperature for last week was two degrees below normal. Overall soil moisture ratings were 4% very short, 18% short, 75% adequate and 3% surplus. There were 5.9 days suitable for field work. Field Crops Report Most field crop development continued at or ahead of normal. CORN harvesting had begun with 5 percent harvested and yields looking great so far; the crop remained in fair to good condition. COTTON remained in mostly good condition with 80 percent of bolls set and 3 percent open at week's end. PEANUT pegging reached 93 percent with the crop in fair to mostly good condition. More than three- fourth of the SOYBEANS had bloomed and leaves were starting to turn color at the end of last week; crop condition was mostly good. SORGHUM condition remained fair to good. Thirty-five percent of the crop had matured at week's end and harvesting had begun. TOBACCO remained in mostly good condition with topping complete and more than one-half of the crop harvested at the end of the week. Fruits, Vegetables and Specialty Crops Report The APPLE crop remained in mostly fair condition. PEACHES remained in good to excellent condition with 73 percent of the crop harvested. CANTALOUP and WATERMELON harvesting was 99 and 98 percent complete, respectively. The TOMATO harvest was nearly complete by week's end. Small Grains, Pasture and Livestock Report Harvesting of OTHER HAY was 90 percent complete with the crop in fair to good shape. PASTURES were in fair to mostly good condition while LIVESTOCK remained in mostly good condition. Crop Progress Table ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 5 Yr : 5 Yr Crop Phase 2004 2003 Avg.:Crop Phase 2004 2003 Avg ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ --Percent-- --Percent-- Cantaloups Harvested 99 99 99 :Sorghum Turned color 65 58 55 Corn Doughed 98 92 95 :Sorghum Matured 35 9 12 Corn Matured 61 54 60 :Sorghum Harvested 2 1 3 Corn Harvested 5 4 13 :Soybeans Bloomed 78 54 59 Cotton Squared 99 97 98 :Soybeans Pods Set 48 18 29 Cotton Bolls Set 80 59 71 :Soybeans Leaves Turned 1 1 1 Cotton Open Bolls 3 1 3 :Tobacco Topped 100 100 100 Other Hay Harvested 90 88 86 :Tobacco Harvested 58 57 51 Peaches Harvested 73 74 76 :Tobacco Stalks Dest. 6 5 7 Peanuts Pegged 93 97 94 :Tomatoes Harvested 99 100 99 Sorghum Headed 98 89 82 :Watermelons Harvested 98 98 98 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Crop Condition Table ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Very Excel- Very Excel- Crop Poor Poor Fair Good lent :Crop Poor Poor Fair Good lent ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ -- Percent -- -- Percent-- Apples 0 0 73 27 0 :Peaches 3 4 14 33 46 Corn 4 10 28 47 11 :Peanuts 0 2 41 55 2 Cotton 0 2 18 73 7 :Sorghum 0 0 48 48 4 Hay 0 6 39 49 6 :Soybeans 0 2 20 65 13 Livestock 0 3 22 69 6 :Sweetpotatoes 0 0 1 99 0 Pastures 1 9 26 58 6 :Tobacco 0 3 15 61 21 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- South Carolina Weekly Weather Summary for the Week Ending August 8, 2004 On Monday morning, Tropical Storm Alex was located southeast of Charleston. Convective showers continued to spin westward around the circulation. Bishopville experienced flash flooding due to excessive rains. Tropical Storm Alex passed well east of the South Carolina coast but scattered showers remained in the area. West winds, following the departing storm on Wednesday, sent afternoon temperatures into the upper 90's. A rare, unseasonable Canadian cold front dropped south Thursday. Like early Fall, blue skies and cool air made for beautiful weekend weather. Daily record morning low temperatures were reported on both Saturday and Sunday at Charleston, Columbia and Greenville. For the period, the State average temperature was two degrees below normal. The highest official temperature reported was 102 degrees at Johnston on August 4. The lowest official temperature reported was 49 degrees at Longcreek on the morning of August 8. The heaviest official 24-hour rainfall reported was 2.28" at Anderson ending at 7:00 a.m. on August 3. The average Statewide rainfall for the period was 0.4". SOIL: 4 inch depth average soil temperature: Columbia 81 degrees. RIVERS AND SURF: South Carolina river stages were near to below normal. Surf temperatures at Myrtle Beach and Savannah will average around 81 degrees. Precipitation Weekly Jan 1 Deviation Total Total From Avg Greer 0.26 22.6 -9.1 Columbia 0.21 25.9 -5.3 Orangeburg 0.89 27.9 -2.4 Charlotte, NC 0.09 25.3 -1.4 Augusta, GA 0.24 24.9 -3.7 Florence 1.56 20.7 -7.5 Myrtle Beach 2.08 24.1 -2.2 Charleston 0.08 21.0 -10.3 Savannah, GA 0.06 23.2 -7.6 Weekly rainfall totals ending midnight Sunday. CLT 0.09 GSP 0.26 FLO CAE 1.56 0.21 MYR AGS 2.08 0.24 OBG 0.89 CHS 0.08 * NA=Not Available M=Missing E=Estimate SAV 0.06 Contact Information Robert A. Graham, Director Jean Besco, IT Specialist Phone: 803-765-5333 E-mail: nass-sc@nass.usda.gov Website: http://www.nass.usda.gov/sc/