September continues to cool as the month progresses, with the average temperature dropping a full degree in the last week. The average temperature is now 17.6 degrees Celsius, and quickly approaching the normal for the entire month of 16.2 C.
There were several days and nights of below normal temperatures, including the morning of September 19 when the temperature in the box (6 ft above ground) dipped to 3.0 C and the temperature at ground level was zero! Not officially a frost but too close for anyone’s liking.
The corn heat unit (CHU) count continued to climb with 401 CHU so far for September, which is well above the prorated normal of 354 CHU. Normal for the full month is 559 CHU and the total so far for the season (since May 16) is now 3010.
The wetness of the preceding weeks and month finally subsided with only 3 mm of rain descending on the area, for a total of 57 mm for the month-to-date, which is about normal.
The forecast for the remainder of the month has shifted a bit, with below average temperatures anticipated for the third week of the month before moving back to normal for the last week.