02/15/06 Extreme cold may hit Plains wheat

Farm and Ranch February 15, 2006 There are some single digit lows in the forecast for areas of the Pacific Northwest later this week but nothing as cold as what may hit the winter wheat crop in parts of the northern plains. USDA meteorologist Brad Rippey explains. Rippey: "There is a very severe cold snap getting set to unleash itself on the northern Plains. Later this week we will see temperatures in the minus 20 to minus 30 range across parts of Montana. Those areas have seen temperatures recently in the 50s and 60s so it is going to be a very sudden change obviously for livestock after all this mild weather. And then for winter wheat which has lost some its winter hardiness due to this mild weather, that could also be a concern." Rippey says there may be some snow coming ahead of that cold which might protect some of that wheat. Rippey: "But we will be watching on the northern Plains for pockets of un-snow covered areas that may be hit by temperatures of 20 below or lower." Rippey says this cold is not expected to do much further damage to the already drought stressed southern Plains wheat crop. Rippey: "Obviously it is going to turn colder there. We may seen some single digits and teens readings later this week. Nothing sub-zero for Texas or Oklahoma or Kansas for that matter. But it will certainly turn sharply colder and we are not expecting a great deal of precipitation and so the areas that are already drought stressed, Oklahoma-Texas in particular, there is not going to be any change in that drought situation." I'm Bob Hoff and that's the Northwest Farm and Ranch Report on the Northwest Ag Information Network.