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Drought worsens in rain-starved Iowa
Drought conditions are worsening in Iowa.
Ag Secretary Mike Naig tells Brownfield 60 percent of the state is now in some sort of drought classification.
“And that is something that bears watching because we need a lot of rain right now. We need consistent and sustained rains in order to keep this crop moving.”
He says much of Iowa was dry last year.
“But the difference between this year and last was that we, if you will, started (last) year with a full tank of gas, we had moisture in the soil profile. That’s not true this year. So as we see temperatures climb, as we see that rain become a little more spotty, there are going to be issues.”
The latest weekly crop report from USDA shows topsoil moisture in Iowa rated nearly 40 percent short to very short. Subsoil moisture conditions in the northwest, west central, central, and south-central parts of the state were rated over 50 percent short to very short.
Brownfield spoke to Naig during the World Pork Expo in Des Moines Thursday.
