Cold, dry
weather favoured fieldwork and eased winter crops toward dormancy.
Precipitation
was confined to western-most portions of the region (Moldova northward into
western Belarus),
maintaining soil moisture in these locales for winter crop establishment.
Elsewhere,
dry weather facilitated seasonal fieldwork, including corn and sunflower
harvesting in Ukraine.
Temperatures
for the week averaged 3 to 6°C below normal, with hard freezes (-2°C or lower)
reported in all but the southern-most winter wheat areas.
Winter wheat
likely approached or entered dormancy from northern Ukraine into central
Russia, where weekly average temperatures were below 5°C; weekly average
temperatures above 5°C across the Black Sea coastal areas indicated wheat was
still adding vegetative growth, or at the very least not yet dormant.