Precipitation
With summer patterns running up to four weeks behind schedule, meteorologist Don Day urges growers to plan in short windows for the second half of the growing season.
NOAA officially declared El Niño on Thursday and says the climate pattern has a 63% chance of reaching “very strong” status by fall, potentially shaping U.S. weather through harvest and winter.
Meteorologist Eric Snodgrass says warmer Pacific waters - not just El Niño - could drive a wetter, stormier summer across much of the Midwest and central U.S.
Brian Bledsoe of Brian Bledsoe Weather explains what’s driving the record heat, how long it may last and why it’s not a repeat of 2012.
NOAA and CPC issue an official El Niño watch with a 62% chance of forming by late summer. Meteorologist Drew Lerner explains why it’s coming sooner than expected, but warns the extreme forecasts may be overstated. What it could mean for global crops this year.
As La Niña Looks to Make One of Its Quickest Exits on Record, Strong El Niño Signals Are Now Brewing
Pacific waters are warming rapidly as La Niña fades. Meteorologists warn the shift could reshape U.S. rainfall, drought conditions and severe weather risk during the 2026 growing season.
How quickly will La Niña exit this year, and when will El Niño enter the picture? Not all meteorologists agree with NOAA or one another, but the timing could have a major impact on weather this spring and summer.
2026 Weather Outlook: La Niña’s Quick Exit, El Niño’s Potential and the Signals Farmers Should Watch
Meteorologists predict a quick La Niña exit, with a 75% chance of transitioning to ENSO-neutral by Jan-March. Expect neutral conditions to persist through at least late spring with a growing chance of El Niño in 2026.
Weather events the day after Thanksgiving are giving a preview for cold temperatures and increased precipitation.
Meteorologist Brian Bledsoe says a strong ridge is keeping much of the U.S. warm and dry through mid-November, extending drought across key farm regions, but a pattern shift may bring some relief, and possibly even snow.
The Climate Prediction Center says there’s a 71% chance of La Niña conditions developing from October through December, while also issuing a La Niña Watch. However, one meteorologist expects La Niña to make a quick exit.
The Midwest has been inundated with rain, heat, oppressive humidity and “corn sweat”. In fact, meteorologist Ryan Maue says the heat index hit 115°F Sunday night in Iowa — and 20°F to 25°F of that was coming from surrounding corn fields.
Obsessing over rain, or the lack of it, is a skill every farmer has mastered. Here are 20 phrases you’ve likely muttered more than once.
The silver lining, meteorologists say, is many farmers and livestock producers in the central and eastern U.S. have had sufficient moisture this spring and milder temperatures headed into summer. For some, that’s about to change.
This spring turned into the wettest in over a century for parts of the U.S. As the focus shifts to June, the moisture in the ground will help keep the heat down, but the pattern is also turning drier for two Midwestern states.
The start of June could bring high heat and drier weather, which is a stark contrast from the forecast for the last week of May.
USDA meteorologist Brad Rippey says climate models have consistently shown a ridge across western North America that could lead to drought development, drought continuation or even drought expansion across portions of the Plains and West.
Drew Lerner, founder of World Weather, Inc., says the summer of 1968 had some strong patterns, including a wetter bias in the western and north-central U.S., but drier in most of the Atlantic Coast states and parts of the eastern and southern Midwest.
A handful of rain-free days were a perfect recipe for spring planting — and farmers took full advantage of the opportunity. This week’s USDA crop progress report puts corn and soybean acres just ahead of last year’s pace.
Don’t let the calendar, coffee shop talk or what your neighbors are doing dictate when you head to the field. Farm Journal field agronomists offer these four tips to help you get your best start ever with #planting2025.
Temperatures are expected to be higher next week, and dry conditions are likely to continue in the western Corn Belt. Concerns are building over what lies ahead for spring planting and early crop growth.
About 45% of U.S. corn production acres and 36% of the soybean ground are dry. The western Corn Belt needs moisture, in particular. A big, wet snowstorm could help, says Eric Snodgrass.
Meteorologists say the active start to January is a sign of what’s ahead with concerns about drought, more cold and a sharp divide in areas of the country seeing too much moisture versus not enough.
As 2024 comes to an end, roughly 70% of the U.S. is experiencing some level of drought and dryness. What does that mean for 2025? According to one meteorologist, in six of the past 10 years with a really dry fall, the spring to follow was also dry.
Get ready for the months ahead to look a lot different than last year.
If predictions hold true, this fall could be a hotter and drier season across much of the U.S.
With eyes on the forecast for July, one ag meteorologist says it looks fairly favorable for much of the Midwest, but there are a few wild cards.