Mississippi Crop Weather Released September 4, 2007 Week Ending Date September 2, 2007 Issue MS-CW3607 Agricultural Summary According to the National Agricultural Statistics Service in Mississippi, there were 5.5 days suitable for fieldwork for the week ending Sunday, September 2, 2007. As corn harvest is nearing completion, producers are turning their attention to the harvest of Group IV and V soybeans, rice and cotton. And while recent scattered showers have improved forage conditions and relieved parched row crops, harvest activities experienced only a slight delay. One major obstacle hindering harvest this season has been the long lines and surplus of grain at the elevators, as well as, a high demand for trucking. Soil moisture was rated 13 percent very short, 46 percent short, 39 percent adequate and 2 percent surplus. Crop progress for week ending 09/02/07 --------------------------------------------------------------------- : This : Last : Last : 5-year Crop : week : week : year : average --------------------------------------------------------------------- : Percent Corn, denting : 100 100 100 99 Corn, mature : 100 97 99 94 Corn, harvested : 73 55 87 61 Corn Silage, harvested : 100 98 100 99 Cotton, setting bolls : 100 100 100 100 Cotton, open bolls : 75 55 84 58 Hay-Warm Season, harvested : 86 81 88 86 Peanuts, harvested : 8 1 4 -- Rice, headed : 100 100 100 100 Rice, mature : 88 78 53 60 Rice, harvested : 20 6 15 14 Sorghum, coloring : 99 98 100 100 Sorghum, mature : 93 83 98 94 Sorghum, harvested : 51 40 88 57 Soybeans, turning color : 82 67 89 74 Soybeans, dropping leaves : 63 50 79 59 Soybeans, harvested : 28 22 68 38 Sweet Potatoes, harvested : 10 5 6 10 --------------------------------------------------------------------- Crop condition for week ending 09/02/07 ------------------------------------------------------------------- : Very : : : : Item : poor : Poor : Fair : Good :Excellent ------------------------------------------------------------------- : Percent : Corn : 3 7 32 37 21 Cotton : 3 5 22 52 18 Hay : 0 7 27 47 19 Livestock : 0 8 26 53 13 Pasture : 1 17 42 35 5 Peanuts : 0 3 50 45 2 Rice : 0 0 10 63 27 Sorghum : 2 9 18 54 17 Soybeans : 3 5 16 47 29 Sweet Potatoes : 0 1 12 63 24 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Comments "The signs of fall are starting to show up pretty quickly. Some trees have started turning color and our forage grass has started slowing down in growth. The temperatures are quite a bit cooler as well. There have been some armyworm out-breaks, but it doesn't seem to be as bad as it has been in past years. Some cattlemen and wildlife enthusiasts are already preparing for fall planting. Corn and soybean yields have been surprisingly good so far, especially considering the drought conditions that we had this summer." -- Houston Therrell, Rankin "Worms are feeding on leaves and pods in some areas. Rain is needed to finish late crops and hay, but dry weather is moving harvest along in other fields. Yields are good for soybeans and sweet potatoes, although corn yields are disappointing." -- Bill Burdine, Chickasaw "Recent rainfall has greatly improved forage production systems and given much needed relief to cotton, peanuts and soybeans; however, the hot dry weather of August will have a marked affect on yields." -- Mark Gillie, Greene "Afternoon showers have made drying and bailing hay difficult this week. Showers are spotty, therefore everyone is not getting rain to build toward one more hay cutting. We should 'have enough' barring any incident before the storm season is over." -- Judith Breland, Stone "Showers have stopped harvesting. Some cotton will be picked this week. Yields on all crops harvested have been good." -- Don Respess, Coahoma "Scattered rain has helped mature cotton and later varieties of soybeans. Harvesting is making good progress, with only short delays from field work." -- Ernest Flint, Attala "The drought continues! Cotton looks okay from the road with about 50% open up the stalk. However, when you get in the field, there is very little left above the current open bolls." -- Stephen R. Winters, Grenada "This past week, rains and full grain elevators have slowed up harvest activities. A few corn growers have completed harvest. To date, most all corn growers are very pleased with their yields. This week's activities will focus on completion of corn harvest for many growers, serious harvest activities on Group V soybeans and cotton defoliation. Fall tillage will also continue at a steady pace." -- Jerry Singleton, Leflore "The main farm activity has been harvesting soybeans and corn. The dry weather continues to limit the growth of forages." -- Melvin Oatis, Benton "Afternoon showers are improving conditions for producers. Hay yields are lower than last year, although some producers have stated that recent rains will provide moisture and improved yields." --Florieda K. Mason, Perry "The harvest of corn and Group IV soybeans is progressing. Scattered rainfall has caused little delay." -- Jay Phelps, Pontotoc "Some scattered thunderstorms dropped rain in areas of the county Thursday. Harvest has been slowed by elevator bottle-necks and an over demand for trucking. Cotton defoliation should begin in the next week to 10 days." -- Tommy Baird, Sunflower Mississippi Weather Summary for Week Ending 09/02/07 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ : : :4 Inch Soil: : Air Temperature : Precipitation :Temperature:Avg :------------------------------------------------------:Plan Division/Station :Max:Min:Avg:Norm:DFN:One : DFN :Rain:Four :Max:Min:Avg:Evap : : : : : :Week: :Days:Weeks: : : : ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Upper Delta : Cleveland : 98 68 84 79 5 0.00 -0.45 0 0.00 Lambert :101 68 83 0.05 -0.66 1 0.05 Tunica : 95 66 81 78 3 0.02 -0.54 1 0.02 Extreme/Average :101 66 83 79 4 0.02 -0.55 1 0.02 North-Central : Calhoun City : 96 68 81 77 4 0.11 -0.65 3 2.78 Hickory Flat : 99 67 81 76 5 0.00 -0.86 0 0.50 Independence :101 65 82 77 5 1.00 0.26 2 1.01 Oxford : 99 66 81 77 4 0.84 0.01 2 1.10 Extreme/Average :101 65 81 77 4 0.49 -0.31 2 1.35 Northeast : Booneville : 94 70 82 76 6 0.58 -0.22 1 0.58 Iuka : 98 65 80 74 6 0.61 -0.31 3 0.64 Ripley :101 66 82 76 6 0.11 -0.62 1 0.30 Tupelo : 98 72 84 0.00 0.00 0 0.75 Verona : 98 70 83 78 5 0.16 -0.80 2 1.28 Extreme/Average :101 65 82 76 6 0.29 -0.49 1 0.71 Lower Delta : Moorhead : 98 70 82 80 2 1.03 0.44 2 1.05 Rolling Fork : 99 70 82 79 3 1.07 0.48 1 1.07 Stoneville :100 69 83 79 4 3.43 2.89 3 3.43 Yazoo City : 97 69 82 80 2 0.15 -0.53 2 0.17 Extreme/Average :100 69 82 80 2 1.42 0.82 2 1.43 Central : Canton : 97 69 82 79 3 0.27 -0.40 2 0.43 Carthage : 91 68 80 79 1 0.20 -0.59 1 1.82 Eupora : 95 68 80 77 3 0.04 -0.70 1 1.10 Lexington : 97 67 81 78 3 0.38 -0.25 2 0.41 Extreme/Average : 97 67 81 78 3 0.22 -0.49 2 0.94 East-Central : Aberdeen : 96 71 83 78 5 0.22 -0.50 3 0.64 Philadelphia : 95 70 83 79 4 0.79 0.02 1 4.04 State University: 98 69 82 78 4 0.30 -0.47 2 1.18 Extreme/Average : 98 69 83 78 5 0.44 -0.32 2 1.95 Southwest : Crystal Springs : 96 70 82 80 2 0.90 -0.04 2 2.00 Natchez : 94 68 81 80 1 0.80 -0.11 3 1.53 Oakley :100 69 82 79 3 0.82 0.01 2 1.83 Vicksburg : 96 69 82 0.63 0.00 2 0.63 Extreme/Average :100 68 82 80 2 0.79 -0.05 2 1.50 South-Central : Collins : 97 71 82 79 3 4.40 3.47 3 4.50 Columbia : 94 71 82 80 2 1.90 0.92 4 6.83 Tylertown : 92 59 79 80 -1 1.22 0.24 6 1.73 Extreme/Average : 97 59 81 80 1 2.51 1.54 4 4.35 Southeast : Beaumont : 0.00 0.00 0 0.00 Hattiesburg : 88 72 80 80 0.38 -0.67 1 0.45 Laurel : 99 72 83 79 4 2.30 1.36 5 2.33 Newton : 96 65 80 78 2 0.96 0.12 4 1.77 Extreme/Average : 96 65 81 79 2 1.21 0.27 3 1.52 Coastal : Gulfport : 89 71 81 81 3.52 2.11 2 6.87 Bay St Louis : 89 68 78 81 -3 4.48 3.15 5 5.09 Extreme/Average : 89 71 80 81 -1 4.00 2.63 4 5.98 State :101 59 82 79 3 1.14 0.31 2 1.98 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ DFN = Departure from Normal.