(Radio Iowa) – State Climatologist Justin Glisan says there were more storms in May, but not much precipitation. “Across the state we were below average by almost two inches. We came in as a statewide average about two-point-eight (2.8) inches and again that’s about two inches below normal,” Glisan says. Temperatures were just a bit warmer. )”Right around 61 degrees as the average, and that’s about a degree above normal,” he says.
Glisan says June could help make up for the lack of May moisture. )”We are seeing a slight lean towards wetter conditions. And that’s a good signal to see as we come out of May drier than normal after the sixth wettest April on record,” Glisan says. “So June is climatologically the wettest month for most of the state. So we would like to see above average precipitation to kind of cut down on the deficits that we developed in May.”
Glisan says the yearly precipitation through May is lagging slightly. “A little over ten inches, which is just about three tenths of an inch below average. So even with those two shoulder months below average, April really saved us in terms of precipitation deficits,” he says. “Now we have seen drought improvement through spring, but through the end of May, we did see abnormal dryness redevelop across portions of north and eastern Iowa. So this is something we’re going to have to look at as we move through June, as we start to ramp up temperatures into July.”
Glisan says the dry weather did allow farmers to make good progress in planting.
