Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SUNDAY, July 1, 1990                   TAG: 9007010184
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: D-10   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: GREG EDWARDS STAFF WRITER
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

SCANT JUNE RAINFALL PUTS STATE ON DROUGHT WATCH

Through Saturday evening,only .83 of an inch of rain had fallen at the Roanoke Regional Airport compared with the 3.34 inches that falls in an average June. Daily temperatures in the valley, however, have not been excessively hot.

For the year, rainfall in the Roanoke Valley was 18.86 inches, which was 97 percent of what could normally be expected.

June was "exceptionally dry," according to Roanoke County Extension Agent Lowell Gobble. "The fortunate part about it is the rainfall we had in April and May.

"We made a lot of hay and got the corn crop up for the most part," Gobble said. It's also been a very good year for the growth of white clover, which helps hold moisture in the soil during dry weather, he said.

The driest parts of the state are in the east and southeast, although South Central Virginia has been dry, too, said Jim Lawson, deputy state agricultural statistician. Northern Virginia, on the other hand, has had some good rain showers recently, Lawson said.

Some of the soybean planting has been slowed by the dry weather, the first time this spring the weather has hurt plantings, Lawson said. Because of favorable conditions, however, soybean planting is already 80 percent complete, way above the average for this time of year.

"To me, this has been one of the best spring planting seasons I can remember up until mid-June," Lawson said.

On the down side, because of the lack of rain in the southern tobacco-producing counties, farmers already have started irrigating their crops, Lawson said.

"The majority of our tobacco growers are irrigating right now," said Gene Amos, the county agent in Henry County, where a million pounds of tobacco are grown each year. Most tobacco growers have invested in irrigation equipment, he said.

The fair weather has helped farmers as well as caused problems. The lack of rain has speeded up the harvesting of small grains, like winter wheat, and the second cutting of hay, Amos and others said.

Faye Mitchell, who farms with her husband, Edwin, in southern Franklin County, said they harvested their wheat crop last week, about a week earlier than normal. Their farm got 0.6 inch of rain Wednesday but because of the dry weather, they have been irrigating their vegetable crops, Mitchell said.

Moving into the summer months, Virginia depends on thunderstorms for its rainfall. Widespread gentle soaking rains generally fall only during the fall and spring months. Because of the scattered nature of thunderstorms, rainfall almost becomes purely a local concern during the summer, Lawson said.

Although some young corn plants are beginning to wither from the warm dry weather, that is not uncommon and only becomes a matter of serious concern if the corn doesn't get any rain before young ears start to form on the plants.

"We're not at a critical point right now," Gobble said. "We're several days away from being more than concerned."

The National Weather Service is predicting little chance for rainfall over the next few days. There is a 30 percent chance of showers today, but Saturday night, no rain was forecast Monday to Thursday.