Western FSUEarly-week rainfall was followed by sunny skies, aiding fieldwork later in the period.
Widespread moderate to heavy showers and thunderstorms (10-110 mm) maintained adequate to abundant soil moisture for filling corn and sunflowers over key growing areas from north-central Ukraine into western and southern Russia.
Rain was lighter, however, in west-central Ukraine (4-15 mm), where short-term drought (25-60 percent of normal over the past 90 days) has lowered yield prospects for soybeans and corn in this part of the country.
Drier weather in Ukraine and Russia later in the period promoted summer crop maturation and harvesting.
Despite the overall favorable conditions for summer crops, spring wheat in the southern Volga District was subjected to excessive heat (38-41°C), which coupled with increasing short-term drought (25-50 percent of normal over the past 60 days) has reduced yield potential as the crop progressed through the filling stages of development.
Eastern FSU
Sunny, increasingly warm weather accelerated spring wheat (north) and cotton (south) toward maturity.
Following plentiful precipitation during the growing season over much of northern Kazakhstan and neighboring portions of central Russia, sunny skies and above-normal temperatures (3-7°C above normal) favored spring wheat maturation.
Despite the nearly-ideal conditions, western-most spring wheat areas (southwestern Urals District and southeastern Volga District) experienced heat (33-38°C) and intensifying short-term drought (25-60 percent of normal over the past 60 days), reducing the yield potential for filling spring wheat in these areas.
The negative impacts are most pronounced in the southeastern Volga District, where satellite-derived vegetation health imagery depicts fair to poor crop conditions.
Elsewhere in Russia and northern Kazakhstan, satellite imagery shows good to excellent conditions in the spring wheat belt as the crop progresses through the filling stages of development.
Farther south, seasonable heat (35- 39°C) and dryness in Uzbekistan accelerated cotton toward maturity, with the harvest typically beginning during the second half of September.