Drought ravages local farms

Growers and cattle farmers in Amherst and Nelson counties now are locked in a drought, with the majority of topsoil in both counties and the state dry with no significant downpour since late June, officials said.

Rain earlier this week was not expected to have an immediate impact.

Pastures are dormant, and cattlemen are using hay instead of grass to feed livestock instead of saving it for the winter. Some may sell cattle early.

Row crops, alfalfa and grass hay have stopped growing and are in survival mode, and farmers are unlikely to get a second hay cut, said Greg Hicks of the Virginia Farm Bureau.

Much of the state’s corn, not including sweet corn, has been under significant stress.

“We’re going to see tremendous loss in yields,” Hicks said of corn. “And, with how low the humidity has been, that has made the evaporation even worse” and the topsoil drier, he said.

“This is really a severe drought in place now.

Some crops have not been harmed as much as row crops. For instance, the hot conditions will make wine grapes sweeter, Hicks said.

Al Weed, who founded Mountain Cove Vineyards near Lovingston with his wife, Emily, said grapes grow sweeter during such hot weather and are more stressed by the possibility of disease in wet weather.

He also is an advocate of warm season grass and has five acres of it on his farm. The warm season grass now is bright green, compared to fescue, which now is brown.

Fruit growers can withstand such heat better than some other growers’ crops can, Hicks said.

“Apple growers can get away with less rain, more than row crops,” he said. “Apples are sweeter when they’re dry, but then the fruit could be smaller.”

The early need for hay may play a significant role for cattle farmers this year.

In Nelson County, “the pastures really have dried out in the last week or so, and so we are kind of waiting to hear how that affects people,” extension agent Michael Lachance said. Nelson agriculture businesses include logging, hay, cattle and wine, and hay is crucial for cattle farmers.

“Because of the weather this spring, a lot of hay wasn’t harvested in a timely manner, and hay quality is less than ideal,” he said. “We’re probably going to pursue a declaration of drought,” which enables cattlemen and growers to secure financing at lower rates.

Lachance asked that farmers call their county supervisor and express what they need. He also encouraged farmers to keep sales receipts and receipts association with the need for additional feeding of cattle.

Most people who grow hay cut it at the end of May, said John Bruguiere, of Dickie Brothers Orchard in Roseland. Bruguiere, whose family owns the orchard, also has cattle and grows fruit, and added sweet potatoes, which do well in hot dry conditions.

The intense heat this year will have an affect on the second cutting of hay. Bruguiere predicted that most growers would not attempt a second cut unless more rain falls.

“Last year, we had a fairly wet year and a great first cutting, so we didn’t need a second cutting,” he said. But snow was on the ground for so long that farmers used their hay supplies.

In Amherst County, beef cattle are a major industry, said Robert Curd, president of the Amherst County Farm Bureau and a county supervisor. “The average size is 200 acres in Amherst County, with 25 to 75 herd sizes,” he said.

Farmers have what are called cow-calf operations and raise beef cattle to 500 to 600 pounds before selling them, and now need hay to feed them.