Across the Corn Belt, cool, rainy weather has largely halted fieldwork. Warm, dry conditions linger for a final day, however, in the Ohio Valley, where Friday’s high temperatures will range from 75 to 80°. Until the rain arrived, producers had been harvesting at a rapid pace, with 43% of U.S. soybeans and 34% of the corn cut by October 8.
On the Plains, cool, showery weather in Nebraska and the Dakotas is slowing or halting fieldwork. In those areas still receiving rain, Friday’s high temperatures should generally range from 45 to 55°. Meanwhile, high winds are developing across the central Plains, where Friday’s peak wind gusts could range from 60 to 70 mph. Across the southern Plains, the arrival of cooler air is ending a late-season warm spell.
In the South, cloudy, damp weather lingers across the southern Atlantic region, while a few thunderstorms dot southern Florida. Elsewhere, warm, dry weather favors fieldwork, including summer crop harvesting and winter wheat planting. Friday’s high temperatures will top 90° in southern sections of Texas and Florida.
In the West, cool, dry weather prevails. Freeze Warnings were in effect early Friday in several areas, mainly from the eastern Great Basin to the central Rockies. Widespread freezes were also noted as far south as northern Arizona. Despite the cool weather, autumn fieldwork is proceeding with few delays. On October 8, Northwestern winter wheat planting ranged from 41% complete in Oregon to 77 percent in Washington.
