Michigan has seen significant areas of drought this winter, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor. It’s one of several Midwestern states experiencing dry conditions.
Aron Buechler, who owns a farm in Bay County and is a board member with the Bay County Conservation District, said if parts of Michigan don't get more rain until planting, it could be a significant issue for crops.
Buechler said not seeing water laying around in low spots in the field is an indicator that it's a dry period. “We have less moisture in the winter and less subsoil moisture,” Buechler said. “Somehow you have to replenish that. So that's just how much more critical rainfall and stuff is during the year.”
Still, he said, while his area is lower than usual on moisture, it’s not by a significant amount.
Brad Pugh is a meteorologist with the National Weather Service and an author of reports from the U.S. Drought Monitor, including the report for this past week. He said as of March 10, only 2% of Michigan was designated as being in a drought, as compared to the start of December, where more than a third of the state met that criteria.
“So there has been a major improvement and decrease in drought coverage this winter,” Pugh said. He said there's a small area in east-central Michigan with long-term drought, but most of the state is now drought free.
Pugh said a lack of precipitation over a certain time, declining soil moisture, stress to vegetation, lower stream flows, and lower lake and reservoir levels are signs of a dry period. But he said that currently, soil moisture for planting season is looking favorable.
“We'll have to see how the remainder of the spring plays out,” Pugh said. “It'll be very important to have frequent precipitation as we go into the warmer time of year and water demand increases.”
The commodity and regulatory relations manager for the Michigan Farm Bureau, Theresa Sisung, said the central area of the state is still considered abnormally dry, but much of the drought has eased because of above-average precipitation.
Consistent precipitation is important for farmers, but some recent trends point toward sporadic heavier downpours that are difficult for crops.
“The farmers just roll with the punches because they're used to having to deal with the weather,” Sisung said. Sisung said farmers look at soil conditions early on and will implement irrigation systems and adjust crop rotations if they expect a dry season, potentially potentially increasing the cost of growing food.
Sisung said crops during a dry season will curl up their leaves because they're trying to hold what little moisture is in there as much as possible. “Unfortunately, if it gets really bad, you will start to notice crops dying.”
She said farmers are working on planning through different scenarios to be as prepared as possible for planting season.
