APPLETON, WI — The snow we received Friday and Sunday is a welcome sight for farmers. Kevin Jarek, crops and soils educator with U-W Madison’s Outagamie County extension says the precipitation was beneficial to plants.
“The snow is welcome,” Jarek said. “Because we have very, very low soil moisture levels. And the snow actually provides insulation for those plants that have broke dormant season.”
However, Jarek says more precipitation is needed to make up for an overall dry 2023.
“What we could really use is a couple of weeks of slow, steady rains to recharge the moisture that we lost last year,” he says. “That has never been replaced. We have moisture in the top foot or two of soil. But once you get below that, it’s even less. ”
The First Alert forecast calls for rain and snow the next two days–followed by three days of dry weather. The early spring snowfalls have reduced the fire danger in Wisconsin. The Department of Natural Resources now lists the entire state in the “low” category.
