Episode 283: First Look at Spring Weather Forecast

With at least one major winter storm in the rearview, temperatures are ticking up and the countdown to planting is on. But with soil moisture deficits remaining across much of the U.S., key growing regions, and warm, dry temperatures causing early season fire risks in some parts of the Southern Plains, farmers are hoping that there will be more rain in the forecast before things dry out for spring field work.  Luckily, DTN Ag Meteorologist John Baranick joins us with some good news for farmers hoping for some drought relief in the coming weeks. Today, John shares his latest spring forecast, with a somewhat chaotic outlook for the next month providing a good chance for storm systems that are likely to bring some widespread precipitation, and potential for flooding and other severe weather events. Then, we’ll talk about temperature as we look further ahead to likely conditions during the key planting periods and into the heart of the summer, when conditions associated with the coming El Niño will likely be in place. We’ll also talk about snow pack and pasture conditions in the Western United States as the winter storm season draws to a close, before we turn our attention to the southern hemisphere, where Argentina and Brazil are struggling with relatively low levels of rainfall as their season draws to a close.