Schuylkill County farmers worried about lack of rain

Jun. 5—RINGTOWN — The strawberry fields on B&R Farm tell a story of farmers' woes amid challenging weather conditions.

The first planting was damaged by frost in early spring, and two later plantings survived excessively dry conditions only with the aid of irrigation, said farm owner Barron L. "Boots" Hetherington, who is also Schuylkill County commissioners chairman.

Then, when rain finally came on Saturday, it was accompanied by hail stones.

"We got hit with a triple whammy — frost, lack of rain and hail," said Hetherington, who's been farming in Union Twp. for 43 years. "It's been challenging."

Hetherington's extensive irrigation system saved his strawberry crop, but other farmers apparently weren't as fortunate. B&R has received calls from a dozen roadside stands asking for strawberries.

While farmers are concerned about lack of rain, the state Department of Environmental Protection lists normal moisture conditions throughout the state.

However, the National Integrated Drought Information System, drought.gov, lists Schuylkill County in its "moderate drought" category.

Dwane L. Miller, Penn State Extension agronomist, has seen dry conditions throughout most of the county.

"We've had very little moisture," he said. "I've talked to farmers that say they don't remember a May that was as dry as the one we just had."

While sporadic thunderstorms can bring some relief, AccuWeather's long-range forecast shows little rain until late June over the region that includes Schuylkill County.

"It's trending cooler, but it looks like there isn't going to be much rain through June," said Alan Reppert, AccuWeather senior meteorologist in State College.

Crops suffer

At Josh Stein's farm near Orwigsburg, farmhands sprinkled water by hand Monday to ensure that newly planted vegetables get enough water to take root.

"It's terrible. I've never seen it this bad this early," said Stein, 40, who has been around farming his entire life. "We're stuck in a weather pattern where we just can't seem to get rain."

Stein has drip irrigation in fields containing tomatoes, peppers and eggplants, but not in his corn fields.

What concerns him is that the dry spell is happening earlier in the growing season. Last year, it came in July and August. This year, it's in May and June.

"There's going to be crop loss," Stein predicted.

Penn State Extension's Miller said there is a bright spot of sorts for hay growers.

The lack of rain has reduced the incidence of moisture-related disease and the quality of the hay is higher, he said. Yields, however, are lower.

Corn and soybeans are off to a painfully slow start in the growing cycle.

Miller has spoken to farmers who have stopped planting because the soil is too dry. Others are on the fence about whether to plant in the coming weeks.

Heavy downpours last week in some areas of southern Schuylkill have helped, Miller said, but it's not enough.

"We need a lot more rain," he said.

Christmas trees threatened

After losing many seedlings to drought last year, Christmas tree growers are facing the second straight year of dry conditions.

At Evergreen Acres Tree Farm near Auburn, Paul Shealer struggles to save the 10,000 seedlings planted this season.

With irrigation systems in only some of the farm's fields, Shealer is worried about the survival of some species of evergreen.

Fraser fir, the most popular Christmas tree, is also the species that needs the most water. It's native to the Great Smoky Mountains where, as Shealer puts it, their heads are always in the clouds. Douglas fir and concolor, native to the Southwest, are more resilient in dry conditions.

Evergreen Acres also raises fruit trees, and Shealer has devised an innovative method of watering them. He's punched holes in the bottom of 55-gallon drums and, when they're filled with water, he loads them on a pickup and releases the water while driving through the orchards.

Irrigation, Shealer said, is only a stop-gap measure.

"Irrigation keeps them alive, but it doesn't make them thrive," he said. "We're praying for some rain."

Contact the writer: rdevlin@republicanherald.com; 570-628-6007