Severe drought affecting South Dundas farmers

A few showers over the weekend has not helped the drought farmers in South Dundas are dealing with this year.

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n “No one can remember this, where it starts dry and stays dry like this,” said Warren Schneckenburger of Cedar Lodge Farms.

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n “This is a once in a hundred year drought. We’ve had droughts before but not like this.”

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n South Nation Conservation issued a Level 2 Drought warning on July 8th due to the lack of spring and early summer rain.

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n “It’s a crop insurance claim year,” stated Schneckenburger. “Corn is already below the threshold for crop insurance. If we had had rain two weeks ago, it would have been a different story.”

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n The high heat has not been good for corn, but  soy beans have fared better.

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n “They prefer 30 degree weather,” said Schneckenburger. “Corn shuts down but Soy doesn’t.”

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n Soy bean growth is tied to the length of day, so the long days of July and August are a plus for that crop.

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n “They continue to grow but they are suffering. We won’t have a record crop but it will be okay.”

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n Farmers with a diversified growing plan wont be at a complete loss.

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n “It was a good year for winter rye this year,” said Schneckenburger. “Last fall helped that grow, it was well established. Straw was good too.”

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n It has not been a good year for haying, which may lead to shortages and higher expenses for farmers who rely on that for livestock.

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n While farms like Schneckenburger’s have a variety of crops to draw on, one grower is praying for much needed rain, and soon.

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n “We are in dire need of rain,” said Dean Beckstead of Smyth’s Apple Orchard in Dundela.

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n “A couple of good days of rain will go a long way.”

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n The lack of rain this season is causing a size issue on apple orchards.

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n “We have a beautiful crop, if only there was rain. Without some, a lot of the apples won’t make grade this year.”

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n Workers at Smyth’s have been inspecting the 100 acre orchard and culling some of the crop.

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n “We’re removing the smallest apples to give the bigger ones a chance to grow and make grade,” said Beckstead.

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n For Beckstead, a poor harvest could not come at a worst time with the orchard investing in a new packing and grading line to increase capacity this year.

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n “We planned ahead, we did the right stuff at the start of the season to increase our yield,” said Beckstead. “This is just an all around kick in the rear end.”

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n Apple growers in South Dundas are not the only ones dealing with this issue.

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n “All the orchards are hurting this season in Ontario,” Beckstead stated. “Except for the ones on Lake Ontario where they can tie into the lake and irrigate.”

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n For an orchard the size and location of Smyth’s, irrigation is not feasible

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n “This is one industry that is 100% tied to Mother Nature, all the time.”

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n Another risk for growers with the hot and humid weather is the type of storms that can form.

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n “That intense heat and humidity means when there is a storm we could get hail. That would end the crop for us then and there.”
n Orchards, like other farms, do have crop insurance in the event of crop failure.

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n “You don’t get rich off crop insurance,” stated Beckstead. “It helps with the expenses but that is it.”

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n The three-month forecast from Environment Canada doesn’t give much hope for relief from the warmer weather, but does point to some ‘above-average’ precipitation for the area.

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n South Nation Conservation forecasts show that a significant amount of rain for many days is needed for relief from the drought.

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n “It can’t come soon enough,” stated Beckstead.

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