Iowa experienced below normal temperatures across the state with mostly isolated precipitation during the week ending June 25, according to the USDA, National Agricultural Statistics Service. Statewide there were 5.3 days suitable for fieldwork. Activities for the week included herbicide application, side-dressing, cultivating, and haying.
Topsoil moisture levels statewide rated 5 percent very short, 23 percent short, 70 percent adequate and 2 percent surplus. Southeast Iowa’s topsoil moisture levels continued to fall with 78 percent rated short to very short. Topsoil moisture levels in west central Iowa rated 3 percent very short, 31 percent short, and 66 percent adequate.
Subsoil moisture levels statewide rated 3 percent very short, 15 percent short, 79 percent adequate and 3 percent surplus. Ratings in west central Iowa were 1 percent very short, 15 percent short, 83 percent adequate and 1 percent surplus.
Seventy-nine percent of the corn crop was rated in good to excellent condition. Soybean emergence reached 96 percent complete, five days behind last year but four days ahead of the 5-year average. Soybean condition rated 74 percent good to excellent.
The second cutting of alfalfa hay reached 10 percent complete, five days behind average. Hay condition rated 84 percent good to excellent. Pasture condition deteriorated slightly to 66 percent good to excellent. Livestock conditions were described as good.
Iowa preliminary weather summary by Harry Hillaker, state climatologist, Iowa Department of Agriculture & Land Stewardship – Iowa experienced a much cooler week with highly variable rainfall amounts.
Hot and humid weather was confined to the midweek dates from Tuesday through Thursday, June 20-22, and primarily across central and southern Iowa. The coolest weather arrived over the weekend with temperatures much below normal from Friday through Sunday, June 23-25.
Temperatures for the week as a whole averaged 2.1 degrees below normal with extremes varying from a Wednesday afternoon high of 97 degrees at Little Sioux to Saturday morning lows of 43 degrees at Chariton and Grinnell.
There were a few scattered light rain showers and thunderstorms on Sunday, Monday, Tuesday and Saturday. Friday and Sunday were dry.
Thunderstorms brought rain to most of the northeast two-thirds of the state on Wednesday with heaviest rains of one to two inches over portions of north central and northeast Iowa. Thunderstorms also brought rain to much of the eastern two-thirds of Iowa on Thursday into early Friday morning with greatest amounts exceeding two inches over portions of northeast and south central Iowa.
New Hampton reported the most rain for the week with 4.28 inches while parts of west central (centered upon Monona and Harrison counties) and southwest Iowa (parts of Fremont and Page counties) recorded no rain at all.
The statewide average rainfall was 0.75 inches while normal for the week is 1.17 inches. There were a few isolated reports of high winds and large hail on Wednesday and Thursday but nothing on the scale of what was seen the prior week across Iowa.
