Conditions here are severely dry.  Very hot weather has moved in with forecast temperatures into the mid-high 90s for the next week.  Humidity has tended to decline to the low 20% values in the late afternoons. The ground is drying rapidly and the Piedmont is officially in "severe drought".  Farmers are beginning to report that crops need rain and harvests will be affected by the drought.  Water rationing plans are in place in nearby Raleigh, Durham and other towns.  Established trees, bushes and shrubs appear to be "OK."  Some small streams have dried up and the Haw River is at a very low flow level.  Our area remains at about one half of the 30-year NOAA "normal" rainfall amount.