Dry Conditions in Kentucky By Matt Dixon Meteorologist UK Ag Weather Center Because rainfall totals have been significantly higher than normal in the past few years, it’s easy to forget that Kentucky can suffer from drought. Our last significant drought developed during the fall months of 2016. At peak strength, toward the end of November, nearly a quarter of the state was under an Extreme drought, the second worst category on the U.S. Drought Monitor. Kentucky hasn’t gotten nearly that dry in 2019, but that’s not to say it can’t happen. Rain Scarce in July and August
sub-average yields of late-planted grain crops. “We’re Not Out of the Woods” With the U.S. Drought Monitor update on August 20 (Figure 1), portions of North Central Kentucky fell into the Moderate Drought category. This was the first time in almost a year that any part of the state had been designated in a drought; the last time was September 4, 2018, in a small section of Western Kentucky. In addition, nearly half of the state fell into the Abnormally Dry category. The good news is that Kentucky saw beneficial rainfall over the latter half of August, removing the label of Moderate Drought from the U.S. Drought Monitor. Unfortunately, we’re not out of the woods. September and October are the two driest months of the year. Through the first week September, most of Kentucky has not seen any rainfall, with the state average coming in at 0.02 through August 7. Looking ahead, the forecast isn’t promising through the first half of September. The next week (9/9 – 9/15) looks mostly dry with only minimal chances for rain in
During the second half of July and into August, rainfall became scarce over portions of the Bluegrass State, especially North Central Kentucky. The heat didn’t help, with highs consistently getting into the upper 80s to Figure 1 U.S. Drought Monitor update from August 20 middle 90s. Even with the remnants of Tropical Storm Barry passing through the area, North Central Kentucky still missed most of the rainfall. After three straight weeks of below normal precipitation, data at the Ag Weather Center showed the state had only averaged 0.92 inches through August 18, about 1.5 inches below normal. According to county agents, impacts were numerous across North Central Kentucky, including diminished pasture conditions, lower pond levels, and expected
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