Ind. cropland in good shape following 2012 drought

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. (AP) - Indiana's state climatologist says plentiful January rains have left the state's farmland in good shape for crops following last summer's record heat and drought.

Purdue University-based state climatologist Dev Niyogi says forecasts call for a warm and wet start to Indiana's planting season before drier conditions arrive during the growing season. He says parts of Indiana could see mild to moderate drought conditions later in the growing season.

But assistant state climatologist Ken Scheeringa tells the Journal & Courier that mild to moderate droughts are not unusual at some point in Indiana during the hottest summer months.

He says the extreme drought Indiana and parts of the Midwest saw last summer happens only two or three times every century and back-to-back droughts are rare.