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Hay, crops pushing through dryness

A southeastern Missouri cattle and row crop producer is concerned about hay and crop production because of drought.

Jeff Reed tells Brownfield he got up to nine tenths an inch of rain this week which has helped relieved some drought stress.

“Really looking to the fall cuttings, that’s [kinda] going to depend on if we get any more moisture in the ground; but the rain really helped a lot of people and probably saved a lot of people from having to sell cattle where drought conditions have just really damaged the grass.”

He says it’s been an odd year with an abnormally dry spring and early summer heat waves.

“We have an irrigation well getting parts over there and [kinda] the rice farmers over there, their wells are actually, some of them are running dry, some of them are having to re-dig wells, re-drill wells deeper. It’s pretty dire this way.”

He says the moisture that has come has been spotty.

“Some guys that are 20 miles and they’ve got the best crop they’ve had in a long time and then we’ve got some guys right here close to us that it’s the worst crop.”

Reed farms near Williamsville, Missouri – west of the bootheel.