Food Plots Drought Monitor
- Thread starter tellico4x4
- Start date
BSK
Well-Known Member
I'm still surprised they have parts of West TN in drought. At my place in Humphreys County, we've received 9.26" of rain in a month and a half.
The drought in west TN (its even worse in north MS)is due to low groundwater. Lots of folks wells are going dry. It will take a while to replenish those levels. But yea, the abundance of rain in recent weeks will help.
BSK
Well-Known Member
That's right, I forgot how much of the Drought Index is based off demand as well as other factors, not just rainfall.
Harold Money jr
Well-Known Member
I'm at the Tennessee River in South East Tennessee Meigs/Roane counties. We had an extreme drought late summer into fall this year. It was so stressful for us farmers as well as the hunters during that time. We've fully made it out and probably have more than we require at this time. I hate it for y'all!! I know how bad it can be.
megalomaniac
Well-Known Member
You guys should see all the pine trees down here dying from the drought stress causing pine beetles to infest the stressed trees.
No bass left in the marsh from no salinity. All the milfoil died from the salinity in the back bayous that are usually freshwater.
Crawfish ponds in LA dried up killing them. Normally crawfish is 3.99 to 4.99 pound before Mardi Gras... this year it's 12.99 per pound. (Prices drop 20% after Mardi Gras)
We are in good shape now, but I'm about to overseed my lawn as I lost about 25% of it from the exceptional drought in SE MS.
It was a crazy drought year I hope we don't repeat any time soon!
No bass left in the marsh from no salinity. All the milfoil died from the salinity in the back bayous that are usually freshwater.
Crawfish ponds in LA dried up killing them. Normally crawfish is 3.99 to 4.99 pound before Mardi Gras... this year it's 12.99 per pound. (Prices drop 20% after Mardi Gras)
We are in good shape now, but I'm about to overseed my lawn as I lost about 25% of it from the exceptional drought in SE MS.
It was a crazy drought year I hope we don't repeat any time soon!
Chaneylake
Well-Known Member
The beetles in pines in my area(West Tennessee) were here years before the current drought.
megalomaniac
Well-Known Member
Sure, they've been here for decades... but the damage this year was astronomical in MS due to the fact that they infest and kill sressed trees. We haven't seen an outbreak like this since 2005 when hurricane Katrina damaged the trees allowing the beetles to kill them.
It's not to the extent of what is killing all the locust trees in middle TN, but it's very pronounced.
Chaneylake
Well-Known Member
We are loosing Ash and Pine to the current "nature system"
Beetles are the issue.
Going on memory Ash lumber products can't be shipped out of the States now.
This last week's rain moved us from D2 to D1 drought. 19 weeks of it so far since Oct 3...
BSK
Well-Known Member
We're now in D1 Drought, but our soil is soggy wet. Although I don't know what the groundwater situation is.
megalomaniac
Well-Known Member
Heard on the radio today we lost an estimated 12 BILLION trees in MS due to the extreme drought and subsequent pine beetle infestation. I'm still wondering if the commissioner of Agriculture misspoke and he meant 12 MILLION.
12 billion would represent 1/19 of all the trees in the United States. I'm guessing he misspoke.
We had drought here prior to and throughout the deer season. Now that its over, we've got plenty of rain, preventing me from getting any outside work done. I need a break.
The ground water situation has been very telling in my areas. I watch ponds fill up with rain then quickly go down as the soil absorbs the water. It's getting better but is still obvious
Here's my drought monitor yesterday. It's clay, about 4' deep & at main gate. If it's got water in it I'm good, if it goes completely dry in summer I'm screwed. Been watching it for over 20 yrs & have planted or not, depending on the state it was in. Sorry @BamaProud but it's more dependable than most weather people 
.
BTW, it was bone dry in last Aug, Sept & Oct, yet I still planted. Some never learn....
.BTW, it was bone dry in last Aug, Sept & Oct, yet I still planted. Some never learn....
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