September among driest ever for Pulaski Co.

By BILL MARDIS, Editor Emeritus
Commonwealth Journal

October 06, 2008 07:07 am

— This past month probably was the driest September on record with many sections of Pulaski County getting less than a tenth of an inch during the entire month.
No official rainfall totals were available for Somerset, but the National Weather Service office in Jackson said September was the driest on record at nearby London.
Many parts of Pulaski County haven’t had significant rainfall since remnants of Hurricane Fay left about 2 inches during the last week in August. That, for many parts of Pulaski County, is the only rain to wet the ground throughout the entire month of August. In other words, some areas around here have had only about 2 inches of rainfall in 60 days.
After the rains of Fay, a lingering, dry northeast wind and higher than normal temperatures quickly sucked up moisture in the topsoil.
Richard Whitis, Pulaski County Extension agent from agriculture, said farmers have started feeding cattle about three months earlier than normal.
“We had a good spring hay crop, but not enough to feed cattle for seven months,” said Whitis. “And, from what I hear, there is not a lot of hay in the Midwest like it was last year.”
Whitis said many farmers, realizing they won’t have enough hay, are selling cattle. Putting a lot of cattle on the market is having a negative effect on prices. The decline is not sharp, but noticeable, he said.
Double cropped soybeans have really been hurt by the dry weather. Whitis guessed that late beans will be “about a 40 percent crop.” Soybeans planted earlier are somewhat better, “ ... probably a 70 percent crop,” Whitis said.
“Overall, we have about a 50 percent crop (of soybeans),” Whitis summarized.
Early corn benefited from rains in June and July. “We’ve got a decent corn crop,” Whitis said.
The drought is also affecting ponds, streams and wells.
“The Soil Conservation Service tells me that ponds levels are extremely low,” said Whitis. “Springs that have never gone dry are going dry now,” he added.
The National Weather Service at Jackson said the latest edition of the U.S. Drought Monitor indicates severe drought conditions are occurring south and west of a line from Mt. Vernon to Barbourville and Pineville. This puts Pulaski County in the severe drought area.
September and October normally are the driest months of the year. The long-range outlook through December indicates a period of normal temperatures and precipitation. The dwindling likelihood of a tropical system dropping additional rainfall would be the only cure for the existing drought conditions.