Week will feel like fall
This week's forecast from Sarah Jones. Enlarge video
Kidcast: Max Grassy
Max Grassy gives today's weather Kidcast. Enlarge video
Rain, rain, go away.
It's the wish of many a farmer as the precipitation level nears 7 inches for the month in the Lawrence area.
"It's just gotten to be too much rain now," said Keith Knabe, a Eudora farmer forced inside to do routine equipment maintenance while he waited for drier conditions. "We'd just like for it to dry up so we can go back to the field."
October has seen 6.58 inches of precipitation, according to 6News meteorologists, but the year-to-date precipitation level of 31.07 inches still is below the normal 34.44 inches.
"It's wetter than normal, but it's not by any means on your top of wettest months or wettest Octobers," Kansas State University climatologist Mary Knapp said.
Even so, the rains have improved the drought conditions.
"The previous drought monitors had an area of moderate drought that extended into northeastern Kansas," Knapp said. "But the latest drought monitor has pushed that out of Kansas into central Missouri. Those rains have improved the conditions so there's no longer a moderate drought. There's not even abnormally dry conditions in that area."
The Lawrence area saw more than 2 inches come down Oct. 13, and nearly 2 inches fell again Wednesday. Less than an inch fell Monday.
To those who are particularly reliant on the weather, it's been a mixed blessing.
"Rain - sometimes it's good and sometimes it's bad," said Bill Wood, agriculture agent for K-State Research and Extension in Douglas County.
The rains are a plus for grasses and any crops planted this fall, but the wet conditions also hurt because farmers were prevented from harvesting soybeans, Wood said.
"I think if our farmers had a choice they would have taken the first 3 inches of rain and stopped and said: 'Wait two weeks,'" Wood said. "It'd really be nice if it'd dry up. We could go a month without rain now and be in good shape."
Comments
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snowWI (anonymous) says…
Yes, the rainfall has been quite significant this month. It would have been nice if some of it had fallen in August.
I also still can not believe that the city commission is trying to develop even more of the floodplain at the taxpayers expense! The floodplain should be left as farmland! Focus economic development away from floodplain areas! This makes good economic sense from a libertarian point of view. Manage the finances and infrastructure that we already have!
riverdrifter (anonymous) says…
Good God: my furnace just kicked on for the first time this fall -October 23! Enough of that. Time to move some pellet fuel to the back porch.
kujayhawk (anonymous) says…
So in the words of my son, the weather needs to be "not too hot, not too cold, but just perfect" for the farmers.
Confrontation (anonymous) says…
I've never met a happy farmer.
farmersdaughter (anonymous) says…
confrontation....you should meet my dad sometime really a funny guy! :)