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Donnelle Eller, Des Moines Register
Mon, July 3, 2023
With drought conditions deepening across Iowa, Clark Whitaker welcomed the half-inch of rain that fell on his crops and pasture in southwest Iowa last Thursday.
Getting rain this year has been the “luck of the draw,” said Whitaker, who farms about 1,100 acres with his son, Will, growing corn, soybeans and alfalfa that he uses to help feed his cattle, pigs and sheep.
“It’s been very spotty, hit and miss,” said the 67-year-old, who hoped more rain through the weekend would help revive pastures that had burned up, with only 2 inches since May.
Iowa has experienced drought for 155 weeks, the longest stretch since the U.S. Drought Monitor began in 2000, says Iowa Climatologist Justin Glisan. Here, corn grows in front of a poorly-growing hayfield due to drought on Tuesday, August 2, 2022, at Rehder Farms outside Hawarden, Iowa.
Across Iowa, drought conditions are nearing a third year, the longest stretch since the U.S. Drought Monitor began 23 years ago, said Justin Glisan, the state climatologist. Some portion of Iowa has experienced drought conditions over the past 155 weeks, beating the 2011-12 drought that lasted 151 weeks, Glisan said.
The U.S. Drought Monitor on Thursday showed almost all of Iowa experiencing abnormally dry or drought conditions. Nearly 90% of Iowa was gripped in drought, with about 45% of the state suffering either severe or extreme drought, including southeast Iowa, where Whitaker farms.
Even with recent showers, and scattered storms over the July 4th weekend, the state is unlikely to escape the drought anytime soon, Glisan said.
Recent rain — and signals that Iowa farmers will see more precipitation in July — will help, Glisan said. But “we will need several months, if not more than a year, to really get enough precipitation to chip away at the long-term deficit” in Iowa, he said.
Glisan said May and June are typically Iowa’s wettest months of the year, but the months as of last week had received only 62% of the normal rainfall, Glisan said. Southeastern Iowa has received less than half its normal rainfall, he said.
May was the 21st driest May in 151 years of record-keeping in Iowa, Glisan said, and June could rank the same, depending on rainfall totals through the weekend.
The reason: A blocking high-pressure system has stymied east-west flow across Iowa, preventing normal rainfall from the Gulf of Mexico, Glisan said.
“In July, we expect to see the pattern shift toward a more active storm track and wetter weather possibilities,” he said.
That’s good news for Iowa farmers. July is a critical time for the state’s corn crop, which will begin tasseling, part of the pollination process that’s a big factor in determining yields.
“We need a lot of rain in July to keep us going,” said Aaron Saeugling, an Iowa State University Extension agronomist in southwest Iowa.
“Soybeans appreciate a good drink, too, but August is much more critical for soybeans, reproduction-wise,” Saeugling said.
Nearly 90% of Iowa is in moderate to extreme drought, the U.S. Monitor showed Thursday. Iowa has experience some level of drought for the past 155 weeks, the longest stretch since the Drought Monitor began in 2000, the state climatologist says.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s weekly crop report shows Iowa's crops have deteriorated: 56% of Iowa’s corn was considered good to excellent, dropping 16 percentage points from the first week in June, and 48% of the state’s soybeans are good to excellent, dropping 22 percentage points.
The rain "was a short-term blessing, but farmers still face a long-term challenge to get enough moisture" for their crops, Saeugling said.
Clarabell Probasco, an ISU Extension agronomist in southeast Iowa, said crops have shown signs of stress: Corn leaves curl tight to prevent moisture loss and soybeans are yellow.
Additionally, the week’s thunderstorms also have brought strong winds along with rain for southern Iowa farmers, knocking over corn plants, Probasco and Saeugling said. Farmers will need some time to determine whether the corn can recover.
The drought probably means some farmers are unlikely to see record yields this year.
“It’s taken top-line yields off the table,” she said, adding that the lack of rain has been especially difficult for cattle and other livestock producers that graze their animals on pastures.
Some farmers are hauling water to their herds and are worried they won’t get a second or third cutting of alfalfa to help feed their herds throughout the winter.
Whitaker said he has enough water for his cow and calf herd. Without some rain to help his pastures, he will need to feed his grazing cows, a move that typically wouldn’t happen until August or September. That will dip into the reserves that he puts away for winter.
“It’s ugly on the grass situation right now,” he said.
Still, Whitaker said his crops look “surprisingly good,” thanks to some timely rains and improving seed genetics. They'll get better with more precipitation.
"Nobody cares if it rains on our parade" this July 4th, he said.
Donnelle Eller covers agriculture, the environment and energy for the Register.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Iowa's drought is the longest the state has seen in 23 years, beating 2011-12
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