“It's been crazy.”
That's what State Rep. Jason Bunting, R-Emington, told the Pontiac Daily Leader recently when describing the current conditions for farming in Livingston County.
Bunting, who represents the eastern part of the county as part of the 106th House District, is also a farmer in the Dwight area. His concerns about the current conditions are two-fold – he has to be worried about his farm business as well as his constituents.
His concerns also cross between the crops in the ground and the livestock in the pastures and pens.
“We haven't seen this kind of short fall since 1988,” Bunting said. “The funning thing is, the corn has good color. The roots are going deep. But when we pollinate, if there's no moisture in the ground to help push that production into seed kernels, we're going to be in a lot of hurt.”
He added that the soybeans aren't appearing to be too bad right now, but things can get worse in a hurry.
Bunting pointed out that beans are low to the ground right now, which keeps them from creating a canopy over the soil. That canopy is important for keeping weeds to minimum and allowing for moisture to be held in the soil longer.
As if nobody could tell, Livingston County is experiencing drought conditions. In fact, the weather has been dry enough to be considered a severe drought, Chuck Collins of WEEK-TV told the Daily Leader.
Source: yahoo.com
Photo Credit: gettyimages-neenawat555
Categories: Illinois, Crops, Weather