fl-crop-weather
State
Florida Crop Weather

Week Ending/Released Dates
Week ending January 26, 2003
Released 4:00 P.M. January 27, 2003

Report Code
FL-CW0403

Weather Summary Report
Hard freezes and frosts dipped down the Peninsula during
the week of January 19 through 25. Temperatures for the week averaged six
to twelve degrees below normal in the major cities and set new daily record
lows in several cities. Snow flurries occurred in a few east coast
localities, such as Daytona Beach, caused by the freezing temperatures
interacting with the warmer ocean. During the coldest mornings,
temperatures fell into the teens at Crestview, Jacksonville, Marianna,
Pensacola, Perry, and Tallahassee; into the twenties at Apalachicola,
Brooksville, Cross City, Daytona Beach, Destin, Gainesville, Leesburg,
Melbourne, Orlando, Panama City, Sanford, St. Petersburg, Tampa and Winter
Haven; and into the thirties at Ft. Lauderdale, Ft. Myers, Ft. Pierce,
Miami, Naples, Pembroke Pines, Pompano Beach, Punta Gorda, Sarasota,
Bradenton, Vero Beach and West Palm Beach. Showers dropped mostly traces of
rain over some Panhandle and Peninsula localities ahead of the cold.
However, most localities recorded no measurable rain for the week.

Field Crops Report
Drying conditions lowered soil moisture supplies which are
rated short to mostly adequate. Very short moisture supplies are reported
for the southeastern coast and a few localities in the northern Peninsula.
Surplus moisture supplies are reported for the extreme northeastern corner.
The continued cold temperatures and disease have lowered the yield
prospects of some small grain acreage in the Panhandle. Some young
sugarcane was damaged by the cold with growers currently assessing actual
damages. Sugarcane harvesting continued in the Everglades region.

Soil Moisture Chart
                            Topsoil                     Subsoil
     Moisture
     Rating         This      Last     Last      This     Last      Last
                    week     week      year     week      week     Year
                                           Percent
 Very short              1        1         0        2         1        0
 Short                  29       19        26       13         9       34
 Adequate               69       75        74       84        85       66
 Surplus                 1        5         0        1         5        0

Vegetable Report
Producers provided freeze covers and irrigated some acreage as
protection from the cold. However, the freezing and near freezing
temperatures over the southern Peninsula caused varying damage to some
crops, especially those with no cold protection. Future yield prospects are
lowered with some acreage abandoned. Vegetables available include snap
beans, cabbage, carrots, celery, cilantro, sweet corn, cucumbers, eggplant,
endive, escarole, lettuce, miscellaneous herbs, parsley, peppers, radishes,
squash, tomatoes, and lighter supplies of strawberries.

Floriculture and Nursery: Growers again provided cold temperature
protection to ferns, potted foliage and other floriculture and nursery
products with blankets, sprinklers and heaters. Some loss occurred with
most plants to recover. Several producers harvested the Valentine's Day
crop prior to the cold temperatures.

Livestock Report
In the Panhandle, pasture condition is mostly poor.
Small grain forage was hurt by freezing temperatures. In the north, pasture
condition is very poor to fair due to extreme,persistent cold, frost, and
drought. Hay feeding is active and hay supplies are dwindling. Range and
pasture in the central and southern counties are mostly in poor condition
with grass growth limited by low temperatures. Statewide, the condition of
cattle decreased due to poor pasture and harsh weather.

Livestock Condition Chart
                                 Range                    Cattle
       Condition            This         Last        This         Last
                           week         week         week         week
                                              Percent
 Very poor                       10            0           0            0
 Poor                            45           30          10            5
 Fair                            35           20          50           35
 Good                            10           50          40           60
 Excellent                        0            0           0            0

Fruit Report
Citrus: The coldest Arctic weather of the fruit season invaded Florida's
citrus belt Thursday and Friday nights. Temperatures below Interstate 4
generally were not low enough long enough to do much damage. There was a
little icing of the fruit remaining to be harvested in the coldest spots.
There was virtually no tree damage south of I-4. Generally, north of the
Interstate temperatures varied considerably with some low readings in the
mid to upper 20s. Most of the early and midseason fruit has been harvested
in the coldest locations and there are very few Valencias located in the
cold low lands. High winds prevented frost from forming on Thursday night
which was the colder of the two nights. Harvesting crews rapidly moved into
the cold locations over the weekend and sent most of that fruit to the
processors. There was plenty of undamaged fruit being picked for the fresh
fruit packers on Saturday and Sunday.

  Caretakers were very busy during the first part of the week dirt-banking
young trees as far south as Hardee and Highlands counties. Irrigation
systems were prepared to run around the clock in many groves. Growers
mowed, disced and chopped cover crops for good air drainage in their
groves. Dead trees were pushed out and stacked for burning and grove heat.
Fertilizers are being applied in most central and southern groves.

                    Estimated boxes harvested week ended
             Crop                 Jan 12         Jan 20         Jan 26
 Navel oranges                       166,000        130,000        121,000
 Early & Mid oranges               8,220,000      8,331,000      6,468,000
 Valencia oranges                      1,000          2,000         10,000
 All grapefruit                      981,000      1,473,000      1,293,000
 Early tangerines                      8,000          3,000          2,000
 Honey tangerines                    147,000        122,000        101,000
 Tangelos                            275,000        217,000        142,000
 Temples                              44,000         66,000         88,000

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