A wide-range of temperatures, weather throughout the Heartland

Weather

A wide-range of temperatures, weather throughout the Heartland

Across the Corn Belt, cool, breezy conditions persist.  Additionally, rain and snow showers linger, mainly downwind of the Great Lakes.  With most harvest activities complete for the season, producers are turning their focus to other agricultural activities, such as fall tillage, fertilizer applications, and farm maintenance.

On the Plains, dry weather accompanies a general warming trend.  However, cold conditions prevail near the Canadian border, with Friday’s high temperatures expected to remain below 32°F in northern sections of Montana and North Dakota.  In contrast, temperatures will rebound to 60°F or higher later Friday as far north as western Nebraska.  In recent weeks, soaking precipitation has generally improved prospects for winter wheat across the central and southern Plains, while pockets of drought are locally hampering wheat establishment on the northern Plains.

In the South, warmth is returning across southern Texas.  Elsewhere, chilly, dry weather prevails.  Frost and light freezes were noted Friday morning as far south as portions of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Georgia.  Southern fieldwork is advancing with few delays; in Louisiana, for example, 57% of the sugarcane had been harvested by November 17, well ahead of the 5-year average of 48%.  Nationally, the cotton harvest was 77% complete by November 17.

In the West, flooding and debris flows remain a threat in parts of northern California and southwestern Oregon, amid ongoing heavy precipitation.  Widespread minor to moderate flooding of creeks and rivers is occurring early Friday west and northwest of Santa Rosa, California, including portions of the Russian River basin.  Significant precipitation is also falling from the Pacific Northwest to the northern Rockies, while heavy, wet snow is blanketing high-elevation sites.