Wisconsin rainfall impacting farmer's crops
WEST BEND, Wis. - Crops need water to grow, but some farmers say all the rain we're getting is actually doing the opposite.
As a farmer, John Falk usually welcomes rainfall. But the amount of rain Mother Nature is delivering this season is a different story.
"A lot of people think you put the seed in the ground and that’s the end of it," Falk said. "You can’t control the weather. This is probably one of the worst years that I can remember."
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Damage to crops
Falk said the frequent showers in West Bend are hurting his crops.
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"There’s so much water that the roots are actually running out of oxygen, and it’s not letting the corn grow," he said.
Falk said in a healthy field, the crops would all be the same height and dark green. But that isn’t the case in his field.
"The shorter stuff is yellow," he said.
Harvest delays
This delays his chance to harvest, and the quality of his crops.
"It stunts a lot of it in these wet areas, that corn won’t put as much of a cob, it won't dry down as fast," Falk said.
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But he still considers himself lucky.
"Overall, it’s going to be a tough year for a lot of people," he said. "We are in a very lucky area compared to a lot of the state with what we’ve got going on."
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FOX6 Weather Experts say Sheboygan, Fond du Lac and Dodge counties are among those hit the hardest.
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"There’s a lot of farms throughout the state that don’t have most of their ground planted," Falk said.
He also said there’s one thing that helps him push through the challenge.
"As a farmer you just gotta have faith that everything is going to work out in the end," he said.