Not much has been in the news about it, but let’s take note — 40 percent of Minnesota is in a drought, mostly in southern Minnesota. It’s just not happening during the growing season.

The U.S. Drought Monitor based at the University of Nebraska in Lincoln classifies most of southern Minnesota as in a severe drought and the rest as a moderate drought or abnormally dry.

As a result, this autumn might have seemed like a pleasant one to most folks. To be sure, it was nice to be outside until the air temperature finally plummeted below freezing. The down side is there has been little to no rain or snow.

Remember this come springtime.

The dry weather could impact the crops grown through much of the region, even if we get a sudden wet spell in the spring. Subsoil moisture is what makes crops grow strong and tall. Heavy rains or sudden snow melt help, but most of that water drains off the land. It’s the regular moisture — a rainfall here, a rainfall there, a little-by-little snow melt — that gets the moisture down into the soil.