The hottest week of the year was just what the crops needed in Wisconsin. The weekly Crop Progress Report from the National Ag Statistics Service Wisconsin Field Office says temperatures in the mid to upper 80′s were 7 to 8 degrees above normal last week and pushed the average corn height to 24 inches, an 11-inch jump from the previous week. That is still 4 inches short of the five-year average. The crop is rated 81% in good to excellent condition.The Badger State soybean crop is rated 74% good to excellent condition and the oats are 72% headed up from 44% a week ago. First crop haying is 94% complete and about 4% of second crop is made. A number of county reporters say, weather permitting, that number will jump substantially this week.
Soil moisture conditions still range from 19% surplus in the Southeast to 12% very short in the Northwest. Madison year-to-date precipitation is 6.3 inches above normal; Milwaukee is nearly 5 inches more than usual while Eau Claire is more than 3.5 inches below normal.
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