Perhaps no commercial enterprises are at the mercy of the weather like farms.
The hot days and record-breaking heat coupled with less than normal rainfall have made the growing season tough, but area farmers say things could be worse.
Just enough rain has fallen to keep crops from wilting under the harsh rays of this summer.
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MIKE REUTHER/Sun-Gazette
Farmer Hal Drick stands near one of his fields.
"It could be better, but it could be worse," said Hal Drick, an Elimsport area farmer. "I am very thankful for what I do have."
Drick's corn was about chest high this week, but that's only because he planted late.
Timely rains have given him a decent enough corn crop this year.
However, he's a bit concerned with his alfalfa.
"The alfalfa crop is not good. The third cutting has been short," he said.
Drick grows alfalfa on about 120 acres of rolling farmland, much of which he uses to feed his dairy herd.
With milk prices down this year, he can't afford to also have bad crops.
The corn, which takes up about 110 acres of his farm, is also at the mercy of Mother Nature.
The half inch of rain that fell Wednesday was a godsend, he said, and additional rain later in the week didn't hurt either.
"My corn is basically just hanging on one rain to the next," he said.
John Carpenter, owner and operator of Carpenter Farm, in Linden, said timely rains have been the key to survival for his crops this season.
"Our rains have been timely enough that I don't think it (hot weather) will affect the crop yield yet. The hot temperatures can affect pollination of corn to the point of where an ear of corn will miss grains from it. So far, everything has looked pretty good."
Carpenter noted his first and second cuttings of hay have been affected by the season's hot weather.
He and Drick pointed out that they are doing much better than many farmers in the Midwest where oppressive heat and drought have wilted crops and helped pushed grain prices to record high prices.
"Some of the crops look pretty decent, some not," said Tom Styer, a Muncy area farmer. "The corn is looking pretty decent. (But) We could use some rain."
Styer said he has pumped a lot of water for his crops from a pond.
His strawberry crop this year was not good, but he's crossing his fingers that next year's yield will be much better.
"We are keeping water on the strawberries for next year," he said.
Unlike much of the area, his farm missed the rainfall that fell last Sunday and Wednesday.
"We're doing OK, but we could use some rain," he said simply.
Styer and Carpenter both grow pumpkins, and although they don't require the rain that some crops require, a little rain wouldn't hurt.
The months of July and August, Styer said, are a crucial time for farmers.
"As long as things continue the way they have been we should be looking at a pretty good year," Carpenter said.
