VO: From Texas Cooperative Extension, this is your weekly Texas Crop and Weather Report for April 17, 2007.
In the PANHANDLE, temperatures were below average most of the week. Late-week storms brought light hail, rain, freezing temperatures and light snow. Soil moisture is rated from short to surplus, with most areas reporting adequate to surplus. Corn planting has been slowed by wet fields and cold temperatures. Only minor damage to the wheat from Easter freezes was reported, and most areas reported the crop in good to excellent condition. Cattle are in fair to good condition. Supplemental feeding has slowed but continued in most areas.
In the SOUTH PLAINS, winds from thirty to fifty miles per hour blew across the region, and farmers had to deal with the blowing sand, shredding of stalks and listing of crops. Preliminary reports indicate that last weekend's freeze significantly damaged grapes. The extent of the damage depended upon location and variety. Freeze damage in wheat has not been as bad as was anticipated. However, the damage may take several days more to become apparent. Pastures and ranges are in fair to good condition. Cattle are in good condition.
Throughout the ROLLING PLAINS, temperatures were cooler with some reports of freezing. A complete assessment of the damage done by the Easter weekend freeze is still days away. But the wheat crop in some counties took a pretty good beating – first from the freeze, and then Friday 13 storm with baseball-sized hail. Extension experts expect yield reductions of at least 10 percent. Pastures have greened up and mesquite has leafed out. Livestock are in good to excellent condition. Cotton farmers are gearing up to plant cotton in the next few weeks.
In the NORTH, the corn crop is nearly one-hundred percent planted, mostly emerged, and in good condition. In some areas, the corn suffered some visible freeze damage but is expected to recover. Wheat that was heading – which includes most of the crop – may have been damaged from last week's freeze. Hail and thunderstorms were reported in some areas. The cooler weather has slowed the growth of warm- season forages. Hessian fly larvae have been found in several varieties of wheat, including those most resistant to the pest. Hay reserves remain low.
In the EASTERN part of the state, farmers are preparing land and planting crops. Warm-season grasses are growing, and winter pastures are doing well. Many cattle are coming out of the winter in thin body condition; other counties reported cattle to be in good to excellent condition. Planting of warm season grasses and vegetable crops continued, and hay supplies remained short. Hay yields from winter pastures are expected to be better this year, but the high price of nitrogen fertilizer and corn have producers worried.
In the FAR WEST, soil moisture ranged from very short to adequate, and crops and pastures are in very poor to good condition. Corn is in poor condition. Winter wheat is in fair to good condition. Freezing temperatures — lasting about forty-eight hours — damaged many crops. Most fruit on trees was damaged, especially apples and peaches. All watermelon seedlings were killed. All of the grape crop was reported lost. The extent of damage to pecan crop is not yet known. High winds dried out the topsoil.
In the WEST CENTRAL part of the state, late-season ice storms and freezing temperatures damaged small grain crops. Damage to wheat fields is currently being evaluated. The extent of the damage to buildings from hail and high wind damage has yet to be determined. There is better news when it comes to range and pastures, with Extension agents reporting "significant improvements" from the recent rainfall. Spring green-up is in full swing, with good growth of warm season grasses. Livestock are in good condition as forage quality improved and quantity increased. The late cold spell was hard on goats, with some deaths in new kids reported..
In CENTRAL Texas, soil moisture ranged from adequate to surplus. Grapes and other fruit appeared to have escaped damage despite a heavy snowfall and temperatures at or slightly below freezing. Some oats and wheat fields were damaged last week from snow and below-average temperatures. Corn and sorghum fields appear all right, having seemingly survived the severe weather. Range and pasture conditions are in good. The cold, wet weather has stalled cotton planting.
In the SOUTHEAST, weather conditions have allowed some oat and ryegrass fields to be baled for hay. Fertilizer applications have been modest because of high costs. A farm in the Dayton area had damage to several hundred acres of corn, 75 acres of grain sorghum and 125 acres of coastal bermudagrass. The damage does not appear to have been caused by the Easter freeze, and an investigation is ongoing. At this time, the damage appears to be isolated to one farm. Livestock are doing well.
In SOUTHWEST Texas, good rains have improved the agricultural situation, but overall, the region remains dry. The last 25-month period has been the driest period on record for a large portion of the region. Late-season cold spells, including a freeze, have slowed the growth of many crops. Young corn and sorghum plants are yellowing as a result of the cold weather, and recently planted cotton may not establish good stands. The region looks green, however, and forage availability has improved. Sorghum, corn, potatoes and some cotton have all been planted and are progressing. The cabbage harvest continued; the spinach harvest has wound down. Potatoes are up, but making very slow progress due to the cool weather.
Much of the COASTAL BEND region experienced record low temperatures with strong winds. Wet field conditions prevented farmers from controlling weeds or replanting fields damaged by the severe weather of last week. Cool temperatures slowed corn growth. Livestock are in good condition, with good grazing as pastures responded to the moisture.
In SOUTH Texas, dry weather prompted producers to irrigate crops in some areas, while the western part of the region received as much as two inches of rain . Harvesting of sugarcane, citrus, vegetables and onions continued. Corn and cotton progressed well. Livestock condition has improved as increased forage on native range and pastures became available.
VO: From Overton, Texas, I'm Robert Burns, with the Texas A&M University Department of Agricultural Communications. -30-