Midwestern row-crop producers should expect a not-too-hot-but-wetter growing season from June through August, according to a National Weather Service summer outlook.
“We may have a little bit of protective influence of Canadian airmasses working their way down, keeping temperatures near to perhaps slightly above normal on average through the summer,” USDA Meteorologist Brad Rippey told Agri-Pulse. He does expect drier weather to move in next month and some areas will need to be monitored. “We do have some areas in the western Corn Belt that have actually had some moisture deficits over the last few weeks,” Rippey said, but noted those areas are not anywhere near a drought yet.
However, Rippey said the National Weather Service is indicating odds are tilted toward a “wet summer” for the vast majority of the Midwest. He said that is particularly true for the central and eastern part of the Corn Belt. Producers in the eastern Corn Belt have already struggled with planting this year due to late freezes and lots of rain. The Pacific Northwest, northern Great Basin, and much of the Rockies should expect below normal precipitation for the next three months, according to the NWS outlook.
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