sc-crop-weather State South Carolina Crop Weather Release Date, Week Ending Date Week Ending August 29, 2004 Issue SC-CW1425 Agricultural Summary Although the week started with warm temperatures and only scattered thundershowers, conditions deteriorated rapidly Saturday when Tropical Storm Gaston began to threaten the South Carolina coastline. Gaston made landfall just south of Cape Romain Sunday bringing winds in excess of 80 miles per hour to some coastal regions like Charleston. The slow movement of the storm caused heavy rains which in turn caused flooding along a corridor leading from Charleston to Florence. Rainfall in parts of Clarendon County measured anywhere from four to seven and a half inches. Crops in parts of Georgetown County sustained high winds and over ten inches of rain. The county, which was also hurt by Hurricane Charley, reported that corn, soybeans and tobacco had started to rot due to flooded fields. More rain is forecast for this week so crop conditions will probably continue to deteriorate in low-lying and coastal areas. Fairfield and Lee counties reported two inches of much needed rain, and most western areas of the State remained sunny and dry. It will probably take the rest of this week to assess all the damage done by Gaston. Overall soil moisture ratings were 2% very short, 21% short, 51% adequate and 26% surplus. There were 5.5 days suitable for field work. Field Crops Report Most field crop development continued at or ahead of normal. CORN was 96 percent mature and 47 percent harvested with the crop remaining in fair to mostly good condition at week's end. COTTON remained in mostly good condition with 97 percent of bolls set and 20 percent open by the end of the week. PEANUT pegging reached 98 percent with condition improving slightly to fair to good. Ninety-seven percent of the SOYBEANS had bloomed and 1 percent of the leaves had started to drop by the end of last week; crop condition remained mostly good. SORGHUM condition continued to improve and 77 percent of the crop was in good shape with 18 percent of the crop harvested. TOBACCO condition lost some ground after Hurricane Charley and will probably continue to deteriorate especially in Georgetown and Williamsburg counties. The crop is in fair to good condition with 90 percent harvested and 43 percent of stalks destroyed at week's end. Fruits, Vegetables and Specialty Crops Report APPLE harvesting was moving along at a good clip with 25 percent harvested and crop condition improved to fair to good. Eighty-eight percent of the PEACH crop had been harvested at week's end. WATERMELON harvesting was complete by the end of the week. Small Grains, Pasture and Livestock Report Harvesting of OTHER HAY was 97 percent complete at the end of the week, and both PASTURE and LIVESTOCK remained in mostly good condition for the week. Six percent of WINTER GRAZINGS had been planted by week's end. Crop Progress Table ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 5 Yr : 5 Yr Crop Phase 2004 2003 Avg.:Crop Phase 2004 2003 Avg ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ --Percent-- --Percent-- Apples Harvested 25 19 21 :Sorghum Harvested 18 14 21 Corn Matured 96 97 97 :Soybeans Bloomed 97 94 91 Corn Harvested 47 28 49 :Soybeans Pods Set 75 64 60 Cotton Bolls Set 97 94 94 :Soybeans Leaves Turned 13 10 10 Cotton Open Bolls 20 13 19 :Soybeans Leaves Dropped 1 0 1 Other Hay Harvested 97 94 94 :Tobacco Harvested 90 84 83 Peaches Harvested 88 91 94 :Tobacco Stalks Dest. 43 29 38 Peanuts Pegged 98 100 99 :Watermelons Harvested 100 100 100 Sorghum Turned color 84 82 82 :Winter Graz.Planted 6 4 3 Sorghum Matured 51 43 48 : ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Crop Condition Table ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Very Excel-: Very Excel- Crop Poor Poor Fair Good lent :Crop Poor Poor Fair Good lent ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ -- Percent -- -- Percent-- Apples 0 0 53 47 0 :Peaches 2 2 9 39 48 Corn 3 7 23 54 13 :Peanuts 0 3 39 49 9 Cotton 0 3 19 71 7 :Sorghum 0 0 19 77 4 Hay 0 6 39 49 6 :Soybeans 0 3 19 63 15 Livestock 0 2 21 61 16 :Sweetpotatos 0 0 65 35 0 Pastures 1 7 24 63 5 :Tobacco 0 11 29 48 12 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ South Carolina Weekly Weather Summary for the Week Ending August 29, 2004 Warm days, mild mornings, and widely scattered evening thunderstorms were observed between Monday and Wednesday. Clouds began brushing the coastal counties Thursday as low pressure began forming along a boundary offshore. On Friday, the feature developed into a tropical depression. The system was upgraded to Tropical Storm Gaston Saturday. Warnings were issued for South Carolina counties facing the Atlantic. Gaston slowly moved north and landfalled as a strong tropical storm just south of Cape Romain Sunday morning. Winds gusted to 82 mph in downtown Charleston. Widespread power disruptions occurred due to toppled trees, downed limbs, and airborne debris. Several small airports reported costly losses to structures and planes. Lakefront property in the Bonneau Beach area of Lake Moultrie was heavily damaged by wind driven breakers. Flooding rains of 5 to 10 inches were measured in a corridor from Charleston County into Florence. Locations west of the storm's circulation enjoyed a sunny and dry end to the week. For the period, the State average temperature was one degree below normal. The highest official temperature reported was 93 degrees at Orangeburg on August 24 and at Chesterfield on August 28. The lowest official temperature reported was 60 degrees at Caesars Head on the morning of August 23. The heaviest official 24-hour rainfall reported was 8.90" at Cades on August 29. The average Statewide rainfall for the period was 1.4 SOIL: 4 inch depth average soil temperature: Columbia 80 degrees. RIVERS AND SURF: South Carolina river stages were near to above normal. Surf temperatures at Myrtle Beach and Savannah will average around 79 degrees. Precipitation Weekly Jan 1 Deviation Total Total From Avg Greer 0.68 25.6 -8.9 Columbia 0.36 30.3 -4.6 Orangeburg 0.61 29.6 -4.1 Charlotte, NC 0.36 30.6 +1.3 Augusta, GA 0.00 28.5 -3.2 Florence 5.19 27.3 -4.5 Myrtle Beach 2.88 35.7 +5.6 Charleston 4.80 31.2 -4.9 Savannah, GA 0.00 26.7 -9.0 Weekly rainfall totals ending midnight Sunday. CLT 0.36 GSP 0.68 FLO CAE 5.19 0.36 MYR AGS 2.88 0.00 OBG 0.61 CHS 4.80 * NA=Not Available M=Missing E=Estimate SAV 0.00 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/