Storm Crop Damage

If you think your trees took a beating Sunday, just imagine what the wind did to corn stalks all over the Tri-state. In Daviess County, Kentucky, corn fields are full of stalks snapped in half and barns are missing roofs and walls. But farmers are surprisingly optimistic about the harvest. You may never thought youd hear a farmer say this. "The worst that could happen now is a big rain." Of Phil Arnolds 300 acres of corn, he says 200 are severely damaged. But because of the dry conditions, it might not be a total loss. "If it doesnt rain, the corn on the ground is still good but it will take twice as long to collect doubling the cost of the harvest for farmers." Clint Hardy is with the Daviess County extension office. He says the longer those harvesting machines run, the more fuel they use. "It will be significantly slower because machines were designed to take crops when its upright, not when its horizontal like it is." That fuel is costing farmers big time. "People think farmers got it made with the high prices, but fuel is eating them up." Hardy hopes this weather will give farmers some kind of a break. "It would be ideal for no rain the next couple weeks because that corn is still full of moisture and its very expensive to dry it and a lot of people dont have that ability to dry. Even though it could have been worse, hardy says he is worried about what will happen with this years harvest. He says he knows farmers will try to get more done in less time but he doesnt know if that will be enough. Corn fields saw the worst of the storms damage because this is such a critical time just before the harvest begins. But tobacco and soy beans are also suffering.