Weather

Bitter cold dominates the upper Midwest

Across the Corn Belt, cold weather is maintaining stress on livestock, particularly across the upper Midwest. Tuesday morning’s temperatures again plunged below -20° in parts of eastern North Dakota and northern Minnesota.

On the Plains, bitterly cold weather across the Dakotas contrasts with mild conditions farther south. In portions of the Dakotas, snowy, breezy conditions and sub-zero temperatures are maintaining stress on livestock.  Despite drought concerns on the central and southern High Plains, winter wheat remains mostly in good shape. On December 29, USDA rated well over half of the wheat in good to excellent condition in South Dakota (70%), Nebraska (65%), Oklahoma (63%), Montana (60%), and Kansas (58%).

In the South, a little bit of light rain is falling across the Deep South, mainly in southern Texas. In parts of the Southeast, soils remain too wet for fieldwork in the wake of recent downpours.

In the West, mild, dry weather prevails, except for a few rain and snow showers across the region’s northern tier. With respect to the early-December cold snap in California’s San Joaquin Valley, USDA reports that “Navel oranges and mandarins sustained some freeze damage,” and that “damaged fruit was sent to be juiced.”

Morning Low Temperature Plot

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