Livestock Wx

May 1st Beef Cows in Drought

Given what’s going on with the cattle market and smaller numbers of cattle being placed into feedlots we wanted to also take a slightly different look at beef cows and drought this week. We usually show the US Drought Monitor, which is a compilation of multiple drought indicators, but given the potential for cattle spending a longer period of time on pasture this year we wanted to focus more on precipitation deficits, and so have used data from the Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI).

SPI data are used in the Drought Monitor but so are other indicators which might not correlate as well with grass production. Based on 2019 survey data from NASS, we estimate there are approximately 18% of beef cows are in at least Moderate Drought. We do expect areas along the Texas Gulf Coast and into Louisiana to improve, however, parts of the Intermountain West and the West/Pacific Northwest could be headed for a long summer with somewhat limited grass production.

Livestock Wx

Subsoil Moisture Update: Dry in the West, Wet in the East

USDA is expected to release its first pasture and range report next week for the 2020 growing season. In anticipation of the report we thought we would take a look at the current state of soil moisture and where we stand with drought around the country.

The map below shows the percent area of subsoils considered in the Very Short and Short categories for each state by USDA. Note the striking divergence between the West and the Midwest and East.

If you want a better break down for each state, the map below shows a new tool by NASA that estimates root zone soil moisture—among other things—each week for the Contiguous U.S. The data are from the GRACE satellite mission and are percentiles based on averages between the years 1948-2012. The most current map paints a fairly somber picture for parts of New Mexico, Colorado, and the West/Pacific Northwest.