The drought monitor report as of Tuesday, Sept. 29, indicates some continuing improvement in conditions, especially for the northeast corner of the state and parts of north-central and northwest Kansas. Almost all of Barton County and much of the surrounding area continue in moderate/severe drought with most of Stafford and Rice Counties in severe drought. This is as of Tuesday, so most of the rains from Tuesday forward won’t show up until next week’s report. The six-to-10-day forecast (Oct. 6-10) indicates a 40-60% chance of above-normal temperatures and 33-50% of below-normal precipitation. The eight-to-14-day forecast (Oct. 8-14) indicates a 40-60% chance of leaning above normal for temperatures and a 33-50% chance of leaning below normal for precipitation.

The rain didn’t help harvest but it’s great for the 2027 wheat crop to get off to a decent start and hopefully some subsoil moisture recharge. The dry period should allow for wheat planting to proceed and harvest to ramp up.

We all know the basic importance of water for plants, especially after the conditions for much of August and September. And that water is almost entirely from the soil and taken up by plant roots.

Why else is adequate soil moisture important?

• Good soil moisture helps moderate soil temperature and prevent major temperature extremes. Water has a high heat capacity. In English, it takes a fair amount of heat to warm water and it “holds on” to heat, especially compared with dry soils where temperatures change more rapidly. So moist soils heat and cool more slowly and retain heat better than dry soils. That matters in winter for wheat in helping provide a warmer environment for the growing point and in summer a cooler soil environment for plant roots.
• Well-hydrated wheat growing points that are at planting depth through the winter are less negatively affected by cold and better able to withstand freezing soil temperatures. True winterkill is typically a combination of bitterly cold temperatures and with very dry soils. And moister fall soils provide for better tillering and establishment of a larger root system.
• With good soil moisture, plants can develop a better, deeper root system to help the plant cope with stress times when they come and explore a larger area of the soil for nutrients.
• When the soil moisture levels are close to field capacity, it’s easier for the plant roots to take up water and it’s easier for the plant to take up exchangeable nutrients such as calcium, potassium, and magnesium.
• Adequate soil moisture promotes good biological activity. This allows fungi and bacteria to work on decomposing crop residue and other organic material. This eventually releases nutrients such as nitrogen, sulfur, and potassium into the soil for plant uptake; promotes the production of stable organic matter (humus); and promotes good soil structure.

Dr. Victor L. Martin is the agriculture instructor/coordinator for Barton Community College. He can be reached at 620-792-9207, ext. 207, or martinv@bartonccc.edu.