Weather

Cooling begins across the Corn Belt; heat continues on the southern Plains

Across the Corn Belt, cooler, breezy conditions are overspreading the upper Midwest, where many fields remain too wet for planting.  Warmth lingers, however, across the central and eastern Corn Belt, favoring corn and soybean planting in areas where fields have dried enough to support farm machinery.

On the Plains, early-season heat continues across much of Oklahoma and Texas, maintaining significant stress on rangeland, pastures, winter grains, and emerging summer crops.  Meanwhile, producers in portions of the northern and central Plains are assessing impacts from Thursday’s high-wind event, which resulted in widespread blowing dust, especially in Nebraska and South Dakota.  Early Friday, lingering thunderstorms are affecting the east-central Plains.

In the South, humid, showery weather is slowing fieldwork in the southern Atlantic States.  Elsewhere, hot, mostly dry weather is promoting fieldwork and crop development.  Friday’s high temperatures west of the Mississippi Delta will generally range from 90 to 95°F.

In the West, near- or below-normal temperatures prevail.  Despite cooler weather and lighter winds in the Southwest, several wildfires remain active.  The Southwest’s largest blaze, the Calf Canyon / Hermits Peak Fire, has charred nearly 260,000 acres of vegetation in northeastern New Mexico.  Elsewhere, isolated rain and snow showers dot the Northwest.