Page 7 - Soil Temp News Today

Weather conditions in South America during the spring planting season offer some mixed signals but point more toward a hot and dry start for most areas in the 2022-2023 season.

Heat with limited shower chances for the Corn Belt and cooler conditions down in South America are the short-term weather factors driving the markets Tuesday.

A third straight winter of cool Pacific equator waters brings an outlook for dry conditions in the Southern Plains and a snowy prospect over the northern tier of the contiguous U.S.

Heat will be spreading across the U.S. the rest of this week and continue through most of next week. Combined with limited showers and decreasing soil moisture, stress is likely during the most important time period for corn -- pollination.

The numbers are still coming in, but early estimates set the number of cattle lost to heat in Kansas feedlots this week at an estimated 10,000 head.

Thunderstorms are coming together early morning on June 13 to potentially bring a significant severe weather event to the Midwest, including a possible derecho.

North Dakota and the surrounding areas that extend into Canada have been very wet this spring, forcing delays in spring planting. A drier stretch of weather may get planters rolling a little faster this week, but the window will not stay open long.

Wet and cold conditions have kept spring planting very slow for much of the country. That pattern continues for the first half of May, with somewhat of a late turnaround to close out the month. The pattern should continue to favor delays and short windows for planting for many areas. Meanwhile, some localized drought relief may come to the Central and Southern Plains, but unlikely toward the Rockies.

Central and western Kansas saw groundwater levels decline by an average of more than 1 foot in 2021.

With planting starting to get underway and wheat waking from dormancy, the risk of cold damage and frost are the near-term weather factor producers need to watch for this spring.