Weather
Largely dry; a more tranquil pattern across the Heartland
Across the Corn Belt, pockets of lowland flooding persist across the middle and upper Mississippi Valley and the eastern Dakotas, but in many areas of the Midwest, sunny, dry weather is nearly ideal for corn and soybean development.
On the Plains, dry weather favors fieldwork and crop development, including winter wheat maturation. The winter wheat harvest in Texas was 53% complete by June 7, compared to the 5-year average of 36%. Currently, cool conditions linger on the eastern Plains, but heat is returning across the southern Plains. According to the latest U.S. Drought Monitor, Extreme Drought is affecting portions of southeastern Colorado, southwestern Kansas, northeastern New Mexico, western Oklahoma, and northern Texas.
In the South, locally heavy showers—accompanied by warm, humid conditions—continue in the southern Atlantic States. Mild, dry weather across the remainder of the region favors fieldwork and crop development. Among major winter wheat production states, Arkansas led the Southeast with 28% of its winter wheat harvested by June 7.
In the West, warm weather has replaced previously cool conditions. In addition, windy, dry weather across the Great Basin and environs is leading to an elevated wildfire threat. In fact, dry weather prevails throughout the region, except for scattered showers in the Pacific Northwest.
