Drought

Rain and cooler temperatures have helped turn around what some had worried would be a less vibrant and shorter fall foliage season across Wisconsin this year. Drought conditions have plagued much of the Wisconsin in recent months, with the majority of the state in a moderate or extreme drought. Those conditions can stress trees, which…

Hot weather is slowing down Wisconsin’s potato harvest. Around 70 percent of the state’s potato crop has already been harvested, but some producers are now delaying their work out of fear the unseasonable heat could cause the harvested potatoes to rot. Kevin Schleicher, sales director for Wysocki Family of Companies, said his Portage County farm…

Exceptional and prolonged drought conditions have created the potential for elevated fire danger, largely in southern Wisconsin. That’s led the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources to require burn permits in designated DNR protection areas across a dozen counties. The special fire order affects Columbia, Crawford, Green Lake, Marquette, Portage, Richland, Sauk, Waupaca and Waushara counties.…

Water levels on the Great Lakes rose sharply earlier this year due to a very wet spring, but they have remained unusually steady over the summer on Lakes Superior and Michigan-Huron due to dry conditions. Lake levels generally rise during the spring on the Great Lakes due to more rainfall and runoff from melting ice…

Editor’s Note: “Garden Talk” is a weekly Wisconsin Public Radio program hosted by Larry Meiller. This column is a weekly recap of tips in response to caller questions. This summer in Wisconsin has been hot and dry, and those conditions have taken a toll on yards. For those looking to patch their lawns, remove weeds…

Rain in southern Wisconsin this week should help relieve some of the drought stress that continues to plague the state this summer. But climate experts say one area in far northern Wisconsin has already maxed out the drought scale. The latest map from the U.S. Drought Monitor shows parts of Douglas and Bayfield counties along…

About 250 more wildfires than normal have ignited across Wisconsin so far this year due to ongoing drought conditions, according to the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. As of Thursday, the agency’s wildfire dashboard showed the state has seen 871 fires that have consumed nearly 4,400 acres to date. The 10-year average for this time…

Luke Goessling grows corn and soybeans on about 700 acres near Whitewater. He had to replant about half of his corn this spring because of too much rain. “We got 2 and a half inches of rain on the field the same day we finished planting and ended up having to replant it all,” he…

Drought conditions in Wisconsin are slowing down crop growth, but a local expert says there is still time to turn the season around. The U.S. Department of Agriculture issued a disaster declaration for 18 southern Wisconsin counties because of drought conditions that started on July 4. The main counties identified were Columbia, Dane, Iowa, Jefferson…

Streams across most of Wisconsin were flowing at above normal rates this spring, but now they’re seeing below normal flows across much of the state as drought conditions continue. The latest data from the U.S. Drought Monitor shows nearly 93 percent of the state is under drought conditions, affecting 5.5 million residents. Around 65 percent…