Soil temperatures are increasing after a cooling period the second week of June, according to Jennie Atkins, the Water and Atmospheric Resources Monitoring Program manager at the Illinois State Water Survey, part of the Prairie Research Institute at Illinois.
Soil temperatures at depths of 4 inches under bare soil fell an average of 8 degrees the second week of June as the state experienced cooler-than-normal weather, from a high of 77 degrees June 9 to a low of 69 on June 13. Soils have been warming but remain 4 degrees below the long-term average as of June 16.
Soil moisture levels at depths from 2 to 8 inches declined during the first week and most of the second week of the month. However, wet weather last weekend caused levels to begin to increase again. Rainfall totals averaged 1.28 inches for June 15 and 16, with significantly high amounts recorded at stations in western and southern Illinois.
Overall, soil moisture levels have remained steady or showed slight declines in the first half of June. Levels at 2-inch depths averaged 0.39 water fraction by volume June 16, more than 40% higher than the long-term average for mid-June.
The Illinois State Water Survey’s WARM Program collects hourly and daily weather and soil information at 19 stations across the state. Daily and monthly summaries can be found at the WARM websiteand in the Illinois Water and Climate Summary.
