Iowa Farm Weather

Story County • Soil temperatures, GDD, frost alerts, and planting conditions.

Demo data — Weather shown is sample data. Live NWS + Iowa Environmental Mesonet integration coming.
FROST RISK — May 8, 2026: Extended forecast shows 28°F possible in northern Iowa. Monitor for potential freeze event near corn/soybean emergence if planting early. NWS Alert →
Story County, Iowa • April 3, 2026 • 8:00 AM
58°F
Partly Cloudy
Wind: NW 12 mph • Humidity: 68%
Barometer: 30.12 inHg ▲ Rising

7-Day Forecast

Thu
58°
36°
0%
Fri
64°
41°
0%
Sat
55°
38°
60%
Sun
61°
44°
20%
Mon
68°
46°
5%
Tue
72°
50°
5%
Wed
67°
48°
25%

Soil Temperatures

Planting Key
51°F 2" depth
49°F 4" depth
46°F 8" depth
Planting Watch: 4" soil temp at 49°F. ISU recommends 50°F+ for corn. Forecast shows 50°F+ by April 10–12.
Corn planting threshold: 50°F at 4"
Soybean planting threshold: 50°F at 2"
Anhydrous application threshold: 50°F at 4" (falling)

Growing Degree Days (GDD)

Base 50°F
42 GDD Accumulated 2026
38 5-Year Average
Season progress (Apr 1 → current):
2026 Actual42 GDD
5-Year Average38 GDD
2026 running 4 GDD ahead of 5-year average. Slightly warm start.

Precipitation

0.42" Last 7 Days
2.18" April Total
9.8" 2026 YTD
April normal: 3.05"
April to date: 2.18" (71% of normal)
YTD normal: 8.9"
YTD surplus/deficit: +0.9" above normal

Severe Weather & Alerts

No active severe weather alerts for Story County.
Derecho Risk Season
Iowa derecho season is June–August. The 2020 derecho caused $1.4B in Iowa crop damage. Watch for elevated CAPE values >3000 J/kg with backed winds in summer months.
Late Frost Window
Iowa average last frost dates: North Iowa May 10–15, Central Iowa May 1–5, South Iowa April 20–25. Monitor closely before planting.
NWS Des Moines Forecast →

Iowa Weather Resources

ISU Iowa Mesonet NWS Des Moines ISU Crop Progress Iowa Drought Monitor