Eastern Cornbelt:
The week began with scattered showers across much of Illinois and Indiana, but conditions dried out for the balance of the week, allowing planting and sidedress activities to continue. Strong storms ripped through Ohio and Michigan on June 5, spawning tornadoes in both states and unleashing heavy rain.
Planting continued to track ahead of the five-year average in the region. Corn planting as of June 2 was 89% complete in Illinois, 90% in Ohio, and 87% in Indiana, while soybean planting had progressed to 81% complete in Illinois and Indiana and 79% in Ohio.
Western Cornbelt:
Another band of heavy rain moved through central Iowa during the week, with reports of 2.25 inches falling in Des Moines, 3.2 inches in Waukee, and more than four inches in Grimes and Algona. The storm also packed large hail in some locations.
Forecasts warned of potentially strong storms pushing through southern Nebraska late in the week, with scattered showers and thunderstorms also reported across central Missouri.
Corn planting as of June 2 had progressed to 93-96% complete in the Western Cornbelt, with soybean planting estimated at 90% complete in Nebraska, 84% in Iowa, and 68% in Missouri. Missouri growers also had 99% of the cotton planted by June 2, with sorghum planting estimated at 52% complete in Nebraska.
Southern Plains:
Strong thunderstorms pushed through eastern Kansas at midweek, producing hail and damaging winds in some locations. Earlier in the week, parts of southwestern Kansas were also hit with strong winds, causing widespread power outages as 60-70 mph gusts brought down trees and power lines.
Severe weather brought heavy rain and flooding to parts of Oklahoma late on June 4, with another round of storms taking aim at northwestern areas of the state on June 6. Central and southern Texas experienced record-breaking heat and humidity during the week, with nearly two dozen daily heat records set across the state on June 5.
Corn planting as of June 2 had progressed to 86% complete in Kansas and 92-95% in Oklahoma and Texas, with 67% of the Kansas soybean crop seeded by that date. Cotton planting was estimated at 84% complete in Kansas, 62% in Texas, and 48% in Oklahoma, while sorghum planting had progressed to 84% complete in Texas, 47% in Oklahoma, and 32-35% in Kansas and Colorado.
South Central:
Spotty thunderstorms moved through Middle Tennessee and parts of Kentucky during the week, while stronger storms hit Louisiana and Mississippi on June 4, causing widespread power outages and structural damage due to high winds and possible tornadoes.
Planting was advancing rapidly in the region. Corn planting was estimated at 79% complete in Kentucky and 93% in Tennessee by June 2. Soybean planting was 94% complete in Mississippi, 92% in Arkansas, 90% in Louisiana, 68% in Tennessee, and 63% in Kentucky, while cotton planting had progressed to 93% complete in Arkansas, 90% in Louisiana and Mississippi, and 83% in Tennessee.
Southeast:
High heat and humidity sparked several thunderstorms across the Southeast in early June, including a potential tornado in northern Virginia on June 5. Forecasts warned of heavy rain and strong thunderstorms in northern Georgia on June 6.
North Carolina growers had 100% of the corn and 69% of the soybeans planted by June 2, while cotton planting had progressed to 77% complete in Georgia, 83% in South Carolina, 87% in Alabama, 88% in North Carolina, and 92% in Virginia. Peanut planting as of June 2 was estimated at 79-98% complete in the Southeast.