Temperature records broken across Texas Panhandle, Most area crops have failed

amarillo.com...

Amarillo reached a record-high temperature of 111 today, according to the National Weather Service. The old record of 109 stood for only two days, having been set Friday. The previous high for this date was 107, set in 1990 and matched in 1998.

Borger set an all-time-high of 113, smashing the old record of 108 set on Friday as well.

Dalhart recorded a record-high temperature of 110. The previous record was 108, also set on Friday.

Im not from the Panhandle, but my friends there have been telling me they've been toasting lately. The article is from a few days ago and it looks like the area has cooled a bit. (Still is hotter than what I would consider comfortable).

I also found this article while looking up the above article.

Nearly all Panhandle/South Plains dryland crops have failed

COLLEGE STATION — Because of the drought, there’s going to be no such thing as dryland crops in the Panhandle and South Plains this year, said Nicholas Kenny, Texas AgriLife Extension Service irrigation specialist based in Amarillo.

Despite some areas receiving rain, in most of the state, record-breaking temperatures — above 110 degrees in some places — continued to hammer agricultural production, according to AgriLife Extension personnel.

According to the U.S. Drought Monitor, more than 70 percent of the state was experiencing exceptional drought as of June 21. About 91 percent was in one stage of drought or another.

I did a little more searching about this, but havent been able to really find anything. It would be nice if anyone else can find some more information about these crops failures.

Kenny’s responsibilities encompass all of the Texas Panhandle and portions of the South Plains region, where 100-plus degree temperatures, wind and low humidity have pushed evapotranspiration rates up as high or higher as they usually are in July or August.

The article says irrigated crops have been surviving , but are struggling just to keep up with the lack of water.

Irrigated crops were surviving, he said, but with as much as 0.6 inch of moisture being lost per day from evapotranspiration, irrigators were running center pivots around the clock just to keep up with water needs, he said.

And because so many dryland fields have failed, high commodity prices should offset the increased costs of constant irrigation pumping, Kenny said.

I wonder how much this season will cost the farmers?

Well after a few seconds more of searching, I found another article that goes along with the 2nd one in the OP

USDA Declares All Counties In Panhandle Disaster Areas

AMARILLO -- All of the counties in the Texas Panhandle have been declared disaster areas by the United States Department of Agriculture. In fact, the U.S. Department of Agriculture has designated 213 counties in Texas as primary natural disaster areas after one of the worst droughts in more than a century. The state sustained excessive heat, high winds and wildfires that burned hundreds of thousands of acres

"Many producers have lost their crops due to the devastation caused by the drought and wildfires," said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. "President Obama and I want these farmers and ranchers to know that we will support them through the recovery process and help them once again become productive suppliers of food, fiber and fuel that keep America prospering. This designation will help provide that support."

Edit - Here's another, longer, article.

news.yahoo.com...

The Agriculture Department designated 213 of Texas' counties directly affected by drought as disaster areas, and the remaining 41 also qualified for assistance because they are contiguous. Thirty-two counties in Louisiana, Oklahoma, Arkansas and New Mexico also garnered the designation because they are adjacent to Texas counties.

Then theres also the fires.

The state is also enduring its worst wildfire season ever. More than 3 million acres have been scorched by the wildfires that have not even spared the more humid East Texas region.

Here you go:

weather-warehouse.com...

From what I can see their average temperature is within normal range.

Wow, I didn't know that. I never pay attention to the temperature, although I don't think it has been that hot here in College Station, it has been hot nonetheless. Another issue for us here is the fact that we haven't received rain in a good while. There was a shower not too long ago, but it didn't do much to de-parch the place. We had a huge fire that destroyed quite a few homes near Navasota recently. I haven't wanted to go outside much all summer, as it feels so much hotter than I thought I was accustomed to.

I grew up in that area. There was a terrible summer similar to this one (though not quite as hot) when I was a kid. The whole area was declared a disaster area from drought.

The farmers there struggle every year, even in the best of years, and depend heavily on federal assistance. It seems like the crops fail more often than they succeed.

reply to post by buni11687


I'm in the southwest, and think there was a heat surge here a few nights ago. Was close to 90F at about 2:30am.

Common night time temps are about 67-69F. Very dry .09" rainfall ytd. Thank God my air conditioner has been working OK.

I currently live in Gaines county. It is the number 1 producer of oil, cotton, and peanuts of all texas counties. I'm not sure that these articles are a bit "low-ball". Cotton has a chance, though the irrigated crops seem puny to say the least.
Cotton prices were outrageous this year, so peanuts were overlooked as an option by many farmers. The acres of peanuts in the coming year are few and far between. We have warehouses of unsold processed seed.

I may be paranoid, but it seems like the market and nature seem to be working together to engineer a food shortage of epic proportion.
Crop losses all over the US, due to drought and flooding and hail, are just scary.

Gonna be a strange year, no matter which doom theory comes out on top.