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recently. “They’re just sitting there.”
Gordon Thornhill, manager of the Rappahannock Co-op and a cattle producer, said that his farm near Boston hasn’t received any significant rain since June. He added that he and his neighbors are feeding their cattle “just like wintertime.” All the hay which had been stockpiled for winter is being used now.
And the hay, of course, is not growing because of the lack of rain. This year’s first cutting was good due to the spring rains, but most county farmers report little or no growth after that cutting.
It’s not just Rappahannock which is suffering, Mr. Wingfield said. On his return from vacation, he said that the entire northeastern U. S. is covered by a blanket of haze.
In Washington, D. C., it’s possible that the city may set a record for the hottest summer ever. Average temperatures are running at 80.3 degrees, above the previous record of 80 degrees. And, Mr. Wingfield said, the meterologists say that each day which passes breaks another record.
While Washington, D. C., was reporting days in which the mercury topped 100 degrees, Mr. Wingfield saw his highest temperatures on July 25, and again August 3. On both days the thermometer soared to 97 degrees, the hottest this summer.
The lack of rain is just another factor, he said. To miss the average for monthly rainfall by only a halfinch, as happened in June, might not seem like much, Mr. Wingfield said. But, “if you get a half-inch one day it may make or break the crop — save it until the next rain comes.”
“I’m just a little guy who plants a garden,” he said. “When I think about those farmers, I feel for anyone who depends for their livelihood on Mother Nature.”
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