fl-crop-weather Week ending September 19, 1999 Released 4:00 P.M. September 20, 1999 WEATHER SUMMARY: Hurricane Floyd traveled up the east coast and delayed field activity during the week of Septem ber 12 through 18. The formation of Tropical Storm Harvey in the Gulf of Mexico brought significant rains to many Peninsula localities at the end of the week. Most rainfall totals for the week ranged from about an inch to almost four inches. The Palmetto- Ruskin region recorded from seven tenths to two inches, while the Southwest reported up to three inches for the week. Dade County reported about an inch and a half of rain while Ft. Pierce recorded three and three fourths inches. Temperatures at the major stations averaged from three degrees below normal to two degrees above. Daytime highs were mostly in the 80s and 90s while nighttime lows were mostly in the 60s and 70s. Tallahassee and Gainesville recorded at least one low in the 50s. FIELD CROPS:Topsoil moisture throughout the State is mostly short to adequate with scattered areas of very short or surplus moisture. Some areas had very heavy rains this past weekend. Peanut harvest is delayed in some areas by dry, hard soil. Cotton harvest is starting. Tobacco marketing is active. Hay making is active. Soybeans and sugarcane conditions continue to be normal. Forty-five percent of the peanuts for nuts are reported harvested. Peanut condition: very poor 3%, poor 7%, fair 60%, and good 30%. Moisture Topsoil Subsoil Rating Last week This week Last week This week Percent Very short 5 17 1 12 Short 27 31 49 50 Adequate 59 42 37 26 Surplus 9 10 13 12 LIVESTOCK AND PASTURES: Statewide, pasture condi tions declined as general drought was not affected by Hurricane Floyd. Panhandle pastures were in bad shape due to drought. Winter forage planting has been delayed due to dry soil condi tions. Northern area pastures are fair with very little army worm pressure. Haying conditions were good. West Central pastures had slow grass growth. Statewide, the condition of cows and calves was mostly good. Range Cattle Condition Last week This week Last week This week Percent Very poor 0 5 0 0 Poor 5 15 0 0 Fair 30 45 20 45 Good 60 35 75 55 Excellent 5 0 5 0 CITRUS: On Tuesday night and Wednesday morning Hurricane Floyd stayed out in the Atlantic Ocean and missed most of Florida's citrus belt. Some areas of the Indian River District did receive wind gusts in the 40 to 50-mile per hour range. Rainfall associated with the hurricane was far less than anticipated. However, tropical weather on Saturday and Sunday dumped several inches of rain on most of this state's citrus groves. The lower interior and both coasts showed the largest accumulations during the weekend's wet weather. There is some minor splitting of early types of fruit which is normal during a moist and soggy September. The recent heavy rains have produced a lot of new foliage on both young and old trees in all areas. Fresh fruit packing houses are moving white and colored grapefruit, Navels, Ambersweet oranges and a few tangerines. Caretakers are cutting cover crops that have made good growth with the help of the current moisture levels. Growers are spraying, fertilizing, liming and herbiciding in most areas. Dead trees are being pushed and burned in most areas. VEGETABLES: Hurricane Floyd's strong winds caused some leaf damage and increased bloom drop in some unprotected fields along the southeastern coast with most plants expected to recover from this damage. Currently, heavy rains and expected strong winds from Tropical Storm Harvey are curtailing most field- work. SNAP BEANS: Dade--The crop is in good condition with good stands established. Planting is on schedule and increasing. Growers are staking pole varieties. Everglades--Planting is slowly gaining momentum. Southwest--Planting is getting underway. East Coast--Producers are discing and laying plastic in preparation of planting. CABBAGE: West Central_Transplanting is gaining. Crop is in fair to good condition. North Central-Transplanting is starting. Hastings-Transplanting is starting. SWEET CORN: Zellwood--Crop condition is good. Hurricane Floyd caused no significant damage. Harvesting is expected to start in early November. Everglades--Planting is active. East Coast--Producers disced some land with most fieldwork delayed due to rains. CUCUMBERS, Fresh Market: West Central--Crop condition is rated good. Planting is increasing. East Coast--Planting is expected to start in about two weeks. PICKLES: Zellwood--Plant growth and fruit development are very good. Picking is expected to start over the next seven to ten days. West Central--The crop is in fair to good condition. Planting is slowly increasing with some delays due to rainy weather. Dade--Crop condition is rated good. Planting is on schedule. Workers are spraying for the control of insects and disease. EGGPLANT: East Coast--Crop condition remains mostly good. Plants on seeded acreage show slow growth. Strong winds caused some leaf burn and minimal bloom loss. Staking and tying are very active. West Central--Condition is fair to good. Plant growth is normal. Dade--The crop is in very good condition. Transplanting is slow. Southwest--Crop condition is rated fair to good. Planting is gaining momentum. ENDIVE/ESCAROLE: Everglades--Planting is underway. LETTUCE: Everglades--Planting of Romaine, head, and leaf varieties is active. OKRA: Dade--Condition is good. Harvesting continues with good quality available. Yield is good. PEPPERS: Southwest--The crop is in fair to good condition. Planting is steady. West Central--Condition is rated fair to good. Planting is gaining momentum. East Coast--Older plants are blooming with fruit set slowly increasing. Plants on seeded acreage show slow growth. Young plants not protected by wind breaks suffered some damage from wind and blowing sand when Hurricane Floyd passed by. Some recent transplants will be replanted. Planting and laying of plastic were delayed when Hurricane Floyd passed by with activity starting back up after mid-week. RADISHES: Everglades--Seeding is active. SQUASH: West Central--The crop is in fair to good condition. Planting is active with most growers to start within the next seven to ten days. Southwest--Planting is getting underway. East Coast--Oldest acreage is in good condition. Plant growth is slow. Germination of recent seedings is mostly good. Hurricane Floyd caused some minor leaf burn with plants expected to recover. STRAWBERRIES: Palmetto-Ruskin--Transplanting is expected to start in two to three weeks. TOMATOES: Quincy--The crop is in good condition. Dry soil conditions are increasing the need for irrigation. Harvesting is expected to start over the next seven to fourteen days. East Coast--The crop is in mostly good condition. Workers staked and tied plants prior to the passage of the storm. Strong winds caused some leaf damage and bloom drop to plants not protected by cane breaks during the first part of the week. Growers are expected to make spot resets of affected plants. Transplanting slowed as the storm passed by with activity again delayed by rain near the end of the week. Palmetto-Ruskin--Crop condition remains fair to good. Transplanting is nearing the end. Oldest plants show tennis ball-sized fruit. Staking, tying, and spraying are active. Picking is expected to begin in three to four weeks. Southwest--The crop is in fair to good condition. The storm caused no significant damage to the crop. Transplanting is on schedule. Laying of plastic, staking and spraying are active. Dade--The crop is in good condition. The storm caused virtually no damage to the crop. Transplanting is slowly increasing with some growers expected to start in October. Spraying and laying of plastic are active. CHERRY TOMATOES: Palmetto-Ruskin--The crop is in fair to good condition. Planting of fall acreage is finished. Southwest--Condition is fair to good. Planting is steady. PLUM TOMATOES: Southwest--Condition is fair to good. Planting remains steady. Palmetto-Ruskin--Crop condition is fair to good. Planting of fall acreage is slowing seasonally. WATERMELONS: Palmetto-Ruskin--The crop is in fair to good condition. Planting is completed. Southwest--Crop condition is rated fair to good. Planting is winding down. To receive this report via e-mail, send an e-mail message to nass-state-releases@news.usda.gov with the following message: subscribe fl-crop-weather. The report will be e-mailed automatically to your e-mail address each week.