January 4, 2026 Soil Moisture, Condition Monitoring and Drought Update
January 4, 2026 Soil Moisture, Condition Monitoring and Drought Update
Mildly Dry conditions at Cheviot OH 3.4W.
Little drought in the immediate Ohio valley but remaining moderate to extreme drought in parts of Indiana and Ohio southwest into Missouri, the south, the southeast, the east coast, New England, the southwest, the Rocky Mountains, and the Pacific Northwest.
| Condition Monitoring Report | ||
| Station Number: | OH-HM-24 | |
| Station Name: | Cheviot 3.4 W | |
| Report Date: | 1/5/2026 | |
| Submitted: | 1/04/2026 8:47 PM | |
| Scale Bar: | Mildly Dry | |
| Description: |
2.58 inches of liquid and melted precipitation since December 1. This is well below normal. Moist antecedent |
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| Categories: | General Awareness Agriculture Plants & Wildlife Society & Public Health Water Supply & Quality |
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| Photos | ||
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Other Drought links:
- NWS Drought Fact Sheet
- North American Drought Monitor (NADM)
- National Integrated Drought Information System (NIDIS)
- National Drought Mitigation Center (NDMC)
- National drought summary>>>
Please remember to water…correctly!
Water once per week, one inch per week, under the entire branch spread, in the absence of rain, May through November. Either rainfall or your watering should equal the one inch per week. Do not water if the soil is already moist. Put out a sprinkler and a straight sided soup can or rain gauge and measure one inch per week. Measure the rainfall which falls in your yard. Your trees don’t care what fell at the airport!
If burlap was left on new trees, it will repel water and the tree or shrub may die. Be sure burlap and twine are removed from the top of all root balls. If your landscaper disagrees, refer him or her to the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) industry standard for installation of landscape plants.
To the extent possible recycle fallen leaves back into the soil around the trees and maintain mulch around the trees to a radius of at least 3-5 feet. Keep mulch off trunks. Use a coarse textured mulch. Avoid triple shredded mulch. Aged arborist wood chips ( https://getchipdrop.com/ ), mulched and composted leaves, pine bark, and pine straw are all good. Very finely ground mulches such as triple ground hardwood mulch are not beneficial and may inhibit moisture and oxygen exchange.
Drought: How Dry Seasons Affect Woody Plants>>>
Soil temperature map
Soil temperatures across the US.
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To learn more about the Weather-Ready Nation program, visit the WRN web site at: https://www.weather.gov/wrn/
