By Clint Thompson
The Southeast has yet to enter an official La Niña weather pattern. But it’s inevitable.
Pam Knox, University of Georgia Extension agricultural climatologist, said the current temperature threshold has prevented weather experts from declaring an official La Niña. But it’s inevitable. It’s just a matter of how long it takes and its impact on the Southeast.
“They keep saying it’s coming, but the longer it takes to get here, the weaker it’s going to probably be. Most of the forecasts now are saying it’s going to be a weak one. That means the northern part of Georgia and most of the Southeast are going to have limited impacts from La Niña,” Knox said. “The southern part of the state going down into Florida, that’s where the strongest signal is. They’re still likely to see some La Niña impacts.”
Knox noted in the UGA Extension Climate Blog that a La Niña will persist through January-March. Its presence this winter means weather conditions are expected to be warmer and drier than normal. That will have negative impacts on Southeast agriculture.
“Warmer winters mean there’s more overwintering of pests and diseases. If you don’t get all of the seeds out, sometimes you get volunteer corn, volunteer peanuts or whatever in the fields next year. If you don’t have a good frost to kill it off, they’re more likely to persist into the next year,” Knox said.
“If it’s a dry winter that means we don’t build up our reserves in the soil moisture for next year going into the growing season. If we go through a dry spell in the spring, we’re more likely to go into a drought. They’re different impacts but are something that impacts agriculture.”