The Central Baldwin area has received an exponential amount of rainfall recently and its effect on local crops, despite prior drought conditions, has been far from positive.

Robertsdale alone received 18 1/2 inches of rainfall within the last week, which is approximately six times the amount the area receives on average for the whole month of October. Summerdale and Foley were also drenched with rainfall totals for the month ranging oddly from 6.37 inches up to 19.71 inches (16 inches of which fell in under four days.)

A lot of crops that were ready to be harvested are now rotting. Peanuts that were turned four or five days before the first rain will sprout before they can be harvested or become weak in the vine and fall to the ground during the process. This will contribute to reduced yields. Peanut crops which have yet to be turned will see a higher success rate, but farmers will still find the bottom, more mature portion of nuts closest to the tap root to be too rotten to harvest.

Soybeans are ready to harvest now, and this much rainfall over the course of a week tends to not only cause damage and rot inside the hull, but can cause the hull itself to split, or “shatter” when the combine reel hits it. Soybeans then spill out and fall to the ground, resulting in a partly unharvestable crop.

There are a number of cotton fields in the area with more cotton stuck to the ground than to the branches. Any cotton that was ready to harvest when these recent rains began has gotten so wet and heavy over the last several days, that it has completely separated from the boll and fallen to the ground rendering it, too, unharvestable.

The cotton that doesn’t fall off remains in jeopardy, as the seeds in the boll have already, or will soon start germinating. This process permanently stains the cotton green and will drastically effect its value. All it takes is a long drawn-out rain at the wrong time to decimate cotton production per acre. If these weather conditions persist, the aftermath could be devastating to area farmers.

Golden Peanut Company Manager, Ernie Stewart remarked, “The jury is still out on all of it; peanuts, soybeans, cotton. It might be better than it seems at this point, but I know it’s had a negative impact. We’ve seen some yield loss and damage to what crops can still be harvested. The upside to these huge rains are that area sod farmers can stop irrigating for a week or two. Local pastures have also received much needed rainfall, and most stand to benefit greatly from it.”

The skies have cleared for the moment, with dry conditions forecasts to continue into next week. Local farmers continue to press on despite the tremendous setbacks brought on by the deluge.