Critic's Choice Essay: Some Thoughts on Oklahoma Plants and Summer 2011's Exceptional Drought

Abstract

Oklahoma has just had a summer of incredible heat and exceptional drought (D4), the worst such designation possible from the National Drought Monitor and marked by a menacing dark red on the drought maps they make. The impacts of this tough climate event can be seen everywhere one looks from the dormant or dead Blackjacks and Eastern Redcedars to the thin young crows, and felt in the economy and our communities. We can set the stage for these musings by quoting Mr. Gary McManus, Associate State Climatologist, Oklahoma Climatological Survey.