DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – A wet spring continues to soak soil across much of the Midwest, causing the prolonged drought to retreat ever so slowly westward.  Sections of central Iowa, southeast Minnesota and western parts of Wisconsin and Missouri have seen notable improvement in drought conditions. The weekly drought monitor measures conditions up to 7 a.m. Tuesday. The report is released on Thursdays by the National Drought Mitigation Center at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

It shows the drought has subsided for nearly two-thirds of Iowa, most of Missouri and Arkansas.  West of those states drought remains. A smaller portion of western Nebraska is in extreme or exceptional drought and southwestern Nebraska improved slightly.  The soil moisture is good news for corn growers who are now dodging rain storms to get seed in the ground.