A hot, dry start to July in Washington gave way to more normal temperatures mid-month and even a few surprisingly cool days at the end. Overall, temperatures were well above normal.
Areas east of the Cascade Mountains generally saw no new records, but Mount Vernon, Wash., experienced the warmest month on record.
PROSSER, Wash.—Washington tree fruit growers are often at the mercy of Mother Nature when it comes to weather. Case in point: the severe thunderstorms of July 20 that, in some areas of south central Washington, battered apple crops with golf ball-sized hail, leaving some orchards with losses of 100 percent.