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Despite high winds and periodic rains, crop planting making good progress

Despite high winds and periodic rains, crop planting making good progress: Afternoon 4” depth soil temperatures have averaged in the low to mid 50s F this week across much of the southern half of Minnesota. This is ideal for corn planting which is making excellent progress this week. Up north, the soil temperatures are in the mid to upper 40s F and farmers are making good progress on spring wheat and sugar beet planting. Gardening centers have been stocking up on seasonal supplies and report business has picked up this past week as well. Weather should continue to be favorable for the agricultural planting season, with temperatures expected to be above normal for the balance of April and into the first weeks of May. Farmers will have to work around rain showers, but on the other hand, they will be welcome in most places to add to soil moisture recharge. The ice went out on Loon Lake in St Louis County on Wednesday, April 23 this week and I suspect a number of northern lakes will l...
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Weather of April so far being kind to agriculture

Weather of April so far being kind to agriculture: Most areas of northern Minnesota continue to show cooler than normal average temperature through the first 17 days of the month, as well as below normal precipitation, while southern parts of the state are showing near normal temperatures and above normal precipitation. However, the forecasts for the balance of April call for above normal temperatures and more frequent changes for rain on a statewide basis, so the month is likely to balance out to be warmer than normal and wetter than normal for most of us. Average shallow soil temperatures (4-inch depth) have climbed into the upper 40s to low 50s F, and according to USDA reports over 70 of Minnesota shows adequate to surplus topsoil moisture. In this context, Minnesota farmers have been very active this week planting oats, wheat, and even corn. With the outlook for the rest of the month favoring warmer than normal temperatures (60s and 70s F), as well as on again, off again rain s...
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Slow evolution of spring, but farmers anxious to plant

Slow evolution of spring, but farmers anxious to plant: After starting the month of April with snowfall in many places, the first 10 days have generally brought cooler than normal temperatures to Minnesota. Most climate stations are reporting April average temperatures so far that are 3-5°F below normal, and a number of communities have reported morning lows in the single digits at times. On April 8th, Grand Marais Airport reported a morning low of -6°F, Seagull Like reported a morning low of -4°F and Gunflint Lake reported -1°F, all very cold for this time of year. Thanks to the wet first three days of the month (mixture of snow and rain) as well as the widespread light rains reported on Wednesday night (April 9) this week, most areas of the state are still reporting above normal precipitation for the month. Many have reported over 2 inches. Combined with the wetter than normal month of March, the area of the state designated to be in Moderate-Severe Drought has declined from 63 pe...
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Wet wrap up of March and beginning of April

Wet wrap up of March and beginning of April Back-to-back low pressure weather systems brought a very wet weekend to conclude the month of March across Minnesota. Many climate stations reported between 1.50 inches and 2.50 inches of precipitation over the weekend. A few places in south-central Minnesota reported over 3 inches. At least 30 new daily precipitation records were reported within the Minnesota climate station network, including a remarkable 3.17 inches at Owatonna (Steele County) on March 30th. The added precipitation over the weekend pushed the monthly total for March to above normal values at most climate stations across the state. Some areas of the state reported thunderstorms, sleet, snow, and even freezing rain from the storms over last weekend. Along the north shore of Lake Superior freezing rain caused ice to form on power lines and bare trees. More on the impact of the weekend storms can be found in a summary from the Minnesota State Climatology Office on their...
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Preliminary Climate Summary for March

Preliminary Climate Summary for March: The story of temperature this month in Minnesota is the great range and disparity between northern Minnesota and southern Minnesota. Average monthly temperatures ranged from just 2°F above normal in some northern communities to 7°F in many southern Minnesota communities. Temperatures ranged from -20°F at Seagull Like (Cook County) on the 2nd to 87°F at Sherburn (Martin County) on the 28th. 28th. In fact, that was a new statewide high temperature record on March 28th, to go along with the new statewide high temperatures set earlier this month on the 10th (77°F at Granite Falls) and the 14th (79°F at Winona). Within the statewide long-term climate station network, over 150 new daily high maximum temperature records were set during the month, with several locations reporting highs of 70°F or greater. In addition, over 40 climate stations reported at least one new record warm overnight minimum temperature record being set. Among those long-term ...
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