Scattered showers provide little relief

? Scattered showers failed to raise soil moisture levels significantly and provided Kansas farmers and livestock producers little relief from the state’s hot weather over the past week, the Kansas Agricultural Statistics Service reported.

For the week, which saw high temperatures above 100 degrees for much of the state, topsoil moisture was rated 34 percent very short, 50 percent short and 16 percent adequate. Subsoil moisture was even worse: 12 percent adequate, 47 percent short and 41 percent very short.

Pasture and range conditions continued to suffer, with only 10 percent rated good. The service rated conditions at 26 percent very poor, 32 percent poor and 32 percent fair. In some areas, supplemental water and feed had to be hauled in for cattle.

Field crops also continued to suffer from the hot, dry conditions, with no more than one-third of any crop rated good or better.

Corn was rated 11 percent very poor, 21 percent poor, 36 percent fair, 25 percent good and 7 percent excellent. Seventy-eight percent of the corn was in dough stage, compared with 81 percent at this time last year and 79 percent for the five-year average.

Soybeans were rated 4 percent very poor, 21 percent poor, 42 percent fair, 29 percent good and 4 percent excellent. Ninety-four percent of the soybeans have bloomed, compared with 95 percent last year and 92 percent for the average. Seventy-four percent were setting pods, 1 percent ahead of last year and 4 percent ahead of the average.

Sorghum conditions were rated 11 percent very poor, 28 percent poor, 36 percent fair, 21 percent good and 4 percent excellent.