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Long-term weather forecast deals growers a split hand

A leading ag meteorologist is expecting a dry growing season west of the Mississippi River and a wet one to the east.

Eric Snodgrass with Nutrien Ag Solutions tells Brownfield if current drought impacts west of the river aren’t relieved by the beginning of April, growers could have a rough growing season.

“The have a Mediterranean climate; basically, when you get to April, their rain shuts off normally,” he said. “So, whatever they don’t have by that point, is going to be problematic.”

He said 75 percent of the lower 48 states are already in some form of drought.

Snodgrass said Brownfield the Eastern Cornbelt and Delta regions are likely to see good moisture, making for a potentially ‘tight’ planting window. He said the Eastern Cornbelt has lost about five workable Spring field days since 1998.

“We’ve made it up with bigger and badder and faster planters,” he said. “But it just means that when the window’s open, we go full-steam to get a crop planted. And, I think, that’s going to be the case this year – we’re going to be waiting for that window to open, get past that last frost, and then go after it quickly.”

Which he said can be risky…

“We might go into a year where we have a large percentage of the crop planted at the same time,” he said. “And that makes the crop more vulnerable, so watch that carefully.”

Snodgrass said he expects above average hurricane risk around August, but not to the extent of the last two years. He said forecasts are subject to change and get more accurate as we enter May and June.