http://droughtreporter.unl.edu/

v 2.4.3.0

Water quality is dreadful. Deep green with algae, covered with mats of duckweed and dying plant-matter. Hasn't rained worth a damn in quite some time. Creek is low enough to step over. Recreation in the park is up--football, basketball, soccer all going strong, many people out on walks and visiting the dog-park. Heat was unpleasant early in the week--high 80's/low 90's (F), many people turning on their AC. Woods are dry. Swamp is almost completely dried up, water table several feet lower than normal so that the only water is in a deep hole beneath the root-ball of a fallen tree. Acorn crop is thick throughout the woods and lawns--this is a very heavy mast year. Squirrels have had three litters of pups rather than the usual 1 or 2 litters, and I've seen some squirrels which were obese! Fungi in the woods are scarce. The only mushrooms I've found of late are some Dryad's saddle and some velvet polypores. Understory plants have died back considerably, and the soil in the woods is drier than normal. Garden plants are thriving with the warmth so long as they're watered. Tomatoes producing heavily, as if it were late August. CoCoRaHS Report from Station #Madison 3.3 NNE on 9/30/2017