Parts of the Midwest got a reprieve from the drought this week, according to thelatest US Drought Monitor report released on Thursday. The report found that last weekend’s cold front brought up to five inches of rain to southeastern Missouri, eastern Illinois and central Indiana.
But that's not enough rain to change conditions dramatically in the region. Ninety-two percent of rangeland and pastures in Missouri are still rated very poor to poor, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Nebraska is worse off, with 97 percent of its rangeland and pastures rated very poor to poor. Eighty-nine percent of the land in Kansas falls into that category. Iowa, western Illinois, Minnesota and Wisconsin are also getting below-average rainfall and above-average temperatures.
The nation’s worst drought in decades moved Harvest Public Media to look at how the drought is affecting livestock producers just starting out in the business. Check out our interactive map below, which was built from data that producers sent to us through our Harvest Network.
Help us report on the drought. We want to know what it’s really like out there. That’s why we need you. What does your farm and rangeland look like? How has your year been? Are you going to survive the drought? Send us some details and a picture by clicking here.
