heat wave

September appears to have picked up right where August left off, with many regions across the Pacific Northwest reporting record or near record heat to start the month.   “We kicked off September on the 1st with a September record tying high of 112 degrees in Lancaster, CA," noted USDA meteorologist Brad Rippey.  "That wa...

China’s record heatwave is beginning to disappear, and farmers are assessing the damage caused by the lengthy dry spell.  Reuters said the Chinese government is urging its producers to replant or switch crops where they can.  Over 70 days of extreme temperatures and low rainfall have hit the country’s crops hard.  Rain is forecast ov...

When we look back on July 2022, one word will come to mind, at least here in the Pacific Northwest.  Hot.  And it wasn't just our neck of the woods that saw extreme heat, but hot conditions were reported up and down the west coast, as well as across the southern Plains.  And Bra...

2021 was a challenging year for the ag industry across the Pacific Northwest, and those ramifications are still being felt.  Chris Voigt Executive Director of the Washington state Potato Commission says last year's heat dome, the extremely hot temperatures the region experienced in late June, led to a smaller crop than expected.  He...

On Thursday, Dan Newhouse, Chair of the Western Caucus and 21 other lawmakers introduced legislation to reauthorized the Emergency Relief Program, formerly known as WHIP+.  The lawmakers said the ERP will offer critical assistance to producers who suffered crop damage because of natural disasters in 2022.  They added E...

It is summer, but temperatures have been a little hotter than normal for the Pacific Northwest.  Cathy Campitelli of USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service offers this advice: "If you feel like it's muggy and hot, your dog or cat, or other pets feel it too, even more so." ...

The summer heat is finally here in the Pacific Northwest.  And while that’s good news for area commodities, it can be a problem for farmers and ag workers. Melissa Ploeckelman with the National Farm Medicine Center said the days are long, the sun is intense, which means the possibility of heat stress and heat stroke increases as the temperature goes up.  She said...

Last month, western Washington representative Suzan DelBene announced that the farming community may be eligible for disaster-related relief funds due to excessive heat and droughts. “Many on this call I know experienced firsthand this series of heat waves, the heat dome that hit the Northwest last summer, including the time in June where our temperatures went up to 120 degrees.  Pai...

During the summer months, crops face a variety of stressors.  Dawn Brunmeier talks about how Helena can help producers mitigate those challenges, allowing for great yields.     If you have a story idea for the PNW Ag Network, call (509) 547-1618, or e-mail glenn.vaagen@townsqu...

Whether temperatures climb above 90 degrees or remain relatively cool, it’s important that everyone in the farming community thinks about skin care this summer and protecting the body’s largest organ.  One in five Americans will develop skin cancer in their lifetime, and Melissa Ploeckelman with the National Farm Medicine Center says for farmers it’s incredibly important they think about sun safet