Update on Drought Conditions in the High Plains Region - August 4, 2015

No changes to the drought monitor this week for the High Plains states. Areas that were dry, either received minimal rainfall over the past week or remained dry. However, there have not been any reportings of insidious long-term effects taking place so the United States Drought Monitor didn’t make any degradations.

In North Dakota, varying amounts of small grains were damaged due to the presence of strong winds in the northern half of the state. Lodging and head loss were reported, but the full extent of the damage will remain unknown until harvest. Most of South Dakota received an inch or more of rain over the past week. Small grain harvesting, hay cutting, and cattle tending were some of the main activities this week in the state. Thanks to near normal temperatures, South Dakota had about a week suitable for fieldwork. Corn, soybean, and oat development are way ahead of their five-year averages this year in South Dakota.

Due to a lack of rainfall across most of Nebraska for a prolonged period of time, dryland stress is beginning to emerge in a few places. However, irrigated crops continue to do well thanks to the near normal temperatures the state has been experiencing. Corn, sorghum, and soybean development were near their five-year averages. For most of the eastern half of Kansas precipitation in excess of an inch was not uncommon. All field crops are near their five-year averages in regards to their development.

In Colorado hot, dry conditions continued last week, pushing small grains to maturity and accelerating the pace of fieldwork. Harvesting activities were virtually complete for winter wheat, while the harvest of spring wheat and barley was well underway. Precipitation events have been insufficient over the last several weeks, resulting in dwindling soil moisture supplies and a decline in most crop conditions. This week Wyoming was relatively cool and dry. Lincoln County reported a frost that killed many crops last week as temperatures dropped down to 28 degrees. Alfalfa, barley, and corn are all at or above their five-year averages.

To learn more about the U.S. Drought Monitor, please see: http://droughtmonitor.unl.edu

To see the U.S. Seasonal Drought Outlook, please see the Climate Prediction Center
here:http://www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov/products/expert_assessment/sdo_summary.html

To see the areas of agriculture affected by the drought, please see the USDA link: http://www.usda.gov/oce/weather/Drought/AgInDrought.pdf

To see the impacts of the drought, please see the Drought Impact Reporter here: http://droughtreporter.unl.edu/
Check out the table below for the drought conditions over the past 2 months for the High Plains Region.

To view statistics of the High Plains Region and each state check out the Regional Statistics here:
http://droughtmonitor.unl.edu/MapsAndData/DataTables.aspx

Drought Condition (Percent Area): High Plains Region