Much of Michigan is in a drought condition. It’s pretty easy to see why. Here are the total precipitation numbers from the beginning of the year.
Before I give you the numbers, remember total precipitation is melted snow and rain. The lack of snow this past winter has a lot to do with our current very dry status.
The map below shows the percentage below normal the precipitation has been in Michigan since January 1, 2021.
Precipitation anomaly in percent of normal precipitation since January 1, 2021
Parts of Michigan’s Thumb and the U.P. near Sault Ste. Marie are at between 25 percent and 50 percent of normal. Most of Michigan has had about half of normal rainfall for the year so far.
The map below puts into perspective the amount of inches below normal.
Precipitation departure from normal since January 1, 2021
The yellow shaded areas are between two inches and four inches below normal on 2021 precipitation.
Watch the farmers as they run their planters across Michigan’s farm fields. It’s a mini dust storm as the equipment kicks up dust. The map below shows the top few inches of soil has very little moisture in it. Part of the eastern Thumb has only two to five percent of typical soil moisture.
Soil moisture deficit in the top three inches of soil.
Here are the exact values on total precipitation this year, and the departure from normal.
| City | Precipitation Year-To-Date | Departure From Normal |
|---|---|---|
| Traverse City | 4.68″ | -4.02″ |
| Saginaw | 4.21″ | -3.86″ |
| Muskegon | 5.40″ | -3.42″ |
| Kalamazoo | 4.91″ | -3.37″ |
| Grand Rapids | 6.46″ | -2.90″ |
| Detroit | 6.20″ | -2.76″ |
| Jackson | 4.53″ | -2.58″ |
| Houghton Lake | 4.30″ | -2.58″ |
| Ann Arbor | 5.69″ | -2.45″ |
| Alpena | 4.66″ | -2.41″ |
| Lansing | 5.92″ | -2.09″ |
| Flint | 5.90″ | -1.81″ |
| Marquette | 8.93″ | -1.47″ |
| Sault Ste. Marie | 7.22″ | -0.50″ |
If you grow anything, whether it’s a home vegetable garden, or hundreds of acres of row crops, you are going to need normal to above normal rainfall this growing season. There isn’t much subsoil moisture to sustain a crop if we start missing June and July rains.
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April 29, 2021 at 09:25AM
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It’s really dry in Michigan; Here are the skimpy numbers - MLive.com
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