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ety on the behalf of farmers is legitimate If fields are, not dry enough for planting, he says seeds may rot in the ground and never sprout.
Despite all this bad news some farmers are trying to keep a positive outlook on the situation.
Newbill Miller of Washington feels that the rains have been a blessing in some respects He says the rains have resulted in an abundance of grass, which “if we re patient." will equal an abundance of hay.
Massie. however, feels that the time for patience has passed and he is concerned that he has hardly any hay put away.
In normal seasons, he says, • all hay would have been reaped by the first week m June. The longer it remains standing in the field the less nutritional value it will hold for cattle this winter.
Williamson noted that while the volume of hay may be higher then normal, its quality will be much lower. In fact, he believes many farmers will have to purchase supplementaryfeeds such as grain this winter.
Miller and Massie may not have the worst problems this season though. According to Williamson, “For organic folks wet weather is more of a problem."
Organic farmers do not use chemicals or pesticides on their crops and things such as moisture related funguses are especially hard to deal with.
Rachel Bynum feels that this year has been a “challenge." She and her husband, Eric, run Waterpenny Farm, an organic farm m Sperryville.
She says that rain has
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