April is off to a warm start with statewide temperatures 10.0 degrees above normal for the first 18 days of April. The statewide average precipitation is 1.66 inches, 76 percent of average. The warmer-than-normal temperatures were prevalent throughout the eastern two-thirds of US but were most intense in the Midwest and Northeast.
The combination of warm temperature, strong winds, and low humidity have aided in drying out fields. According to the National Agriculture Statistics Service, near the beginning of the month 50 percent of the fields in Illinois were rated with surplus moisture. By the April 19 report, this number had dropped to 7 percent.
