Brad Rippey

Whether you call it a late summer, or beautiful fall; regardless of the name you give it, the weather we’ve seen not only here in the Northwest but across much of the country has been good for harvest, from grapes and tree fruit here in the Northwest, to corn and soybeans in the heartland.  But...

Much of the Northwest already knows this, but now the numbers just prove those thoughts.  Soil moisture levels across the western portion of the U.S. remain very low, even for this time of year.  Nationally, 62% of the country is dealing with soil moisture numbers that are very short to short.  The top state, wh...

The sunny, dry weather we’ve seen across much of wheat country, not only here in the Northwest, but in the middle portion of the county, is great news for dry down and harvest, but it’s not great news for winter wheat emergence and establishment.  But, as m...

The U.S. winter wheat crop planting passed the halfway mark over the past week to reach 51% complete by Sunday October 6th, one point behind the five-year average.   “One thing we have noticed is that planting has been delayed in a few areas due to dryness," noted USDA meteorologist Brad Rippey.  "And so ...

This is the first week of October, which means we’re well into fall panting for winter wheat across the country.   “As we start October, 44% of the winter wheat production area in the United States is in drought," said USDA meteorologist Brad Rippey.  "That's actual...

After the summer the Northwest has experienced, it should come as no surprise that pasture conditions in the area don’t look great to start the month of October.  USDA meteorologist Brad Rippey noted some of the driest lands are in the Great Plains, and out here in the West.   “Leadi...

The USDA released it’s first numbers from the 2024 sugar beet harvest earlier this week.  USDA meteorologist Brad Rippey said things look good nationally in the early stages.   “Nationally, 8% of the crop has been harvested.  The five-year average is...

We may have just wrapped up the 2024 winter wheat harvest, but it’s already time to look ahead to 2025, as planting has begun across the country.  USDA meteorologist Brad Rippey looked at planting numbers from last week.   “Showing 2% of the intended acreage planted on that date," Rippey noted.  "Right now par with the ...

This year’s drought has impacted a variety of commodities in several ways.  One crop starting to feel the pressure is hay.  According to USDA meteorologist Brad Rippey, as the drought map expanded in August, more and more of the nation’s hay crop was impacted.   “20% was the drought c...

With the end of the most intense portion of the irrigation season with in sight here in the Northwest, how is water storage fairing as we prepared to head into fall?  USDA meteorologist Brad Rippy said when it comes to the 11 Western states they watch, nine of those states either close to normal or above normal storage.   “...