The wetter than normal pattern will likely continue into the first half of June now. Weather models have been trending wetter and that is important to note. The risk is increasing toward the wetter side the next 30-days. This applies to much of the corn belt as well not just Ohio.
The outlook for the rest of May is for cooler and wetter than normal. It appears we have a rain event this week later Wednesday into part of Thursday then again for the weekend. Each event will average a half inch to inch but there will be variability from 0.25 inches to 1.5 inches.
Even next week there could be another system about the middle of next week.
It does not appear we will have a five day dry period for hay crops anytime in the next two weeks.
The outlook for June is wetter and warmer than normal. Temperatures in June appear to be about 2 degrees above normal. Rainfall will average up to 1 inch above normal.
It still appears a switch to drier will occur sometime for July and August.
The outlook for the next two weeks calls for widespread 2-4 inches of rain across much of Ohio. Normal is 2 inches. See the latest NOAA/NWS/OHRFC 16-day rainfall average forecast.
On another topic, there is a great new runoff forecast tool to help the agriculture industry. It is hosted by the Ohio Department of Agriculture. It is worth checking out.
The Ohio Applicator Forecast is a new online tool designed to help nutrient applicators identify times when the potential nutrient loss from a fertilizer or manure application is low. The Ohio Applicator Forecast takes data from the National Weather Service, predicting potential for runoff to occur in a given area. The forecast takes snow accumulation and melt, soil moisture content and forecast precipitation and temperatures into account, giving farmers substantial information when they are making nutrient application decisions.
“The National Weather Service is excited to work with Ohio in their efforts to help farmers reduce nutrient runoff across the Midwest,” said Brian Astifan, the Development and Operations Hydrologist with the National Weather Service Ohio River Forecast Center in Wilmington, Ohio. “We believe Ohio’s partnership with several federal agencies and educational institutions to develop this decision-support tool will benefit farmers and ultimately work towards improving Ohio’s water quality.”
ODA will continue to reach out to farmers and applicators in the coming months to make them aware of these new and beneficial tools. For the Ohio Applicator Forecast, individuals can visit http://agri.ohio.gov/divs/plant/OhioApplicatorForecast/oaf.aspx.
See example of the runoff tool here.
