A recent spell of wet weather was accepted gratefully by weary farmers, but with the realization that more — and in some cases, much more — is needed to escape an extended drought.
“We’re still struggling,” said Hunter Nickell, a livestock production agent with Southwind Extension District. “The rain helped some of the grass perk up a little bit, but most of the cool season grasses have grown only a little bit, and they’ll be going dormant in June. Fescue is still pretty short.”
Hay production is likely to be a fraction of what it has been, and ponds are markedly lower than what farmers prefer — if they’re not dried up altogether.
“I’ve got a piece of dirt out here that’s worked the best it has in 70 years — because it’s so dry,” joked one farmer who asked not to be identified. “We’re short on rain, and short on grass.”
The rainfall discrepancy has persisted since last spring, with parts of Southeast Kansas at 15 inches or more below normal since May of 2022.
The dry weather will cut significantly into hay production, Nickell predicted, which will add to input costs for farmers having to buy stored hay.
KANSAS State University has 75 weather observation stations across the state, with the nearest to Allen County on the outskirts of Yates Center.
As of Thursday morning, the station has measured 26.44 inches of rain since this time last year, or 15.56 inches below normal.
And there are pockets in the area in even worse shape. Sedan, on the Kansas-Oklahoma line, is at 19.15 inches for the past 12 months, or more than 21 inches below normal.
“A lot of the rainfall we’ve received has been so scattered,” Nickell said. “Some places are in better shape than others, but the southern part of Allen County, and Humboldt are in pretty rough shape.”
And even with the brief rain spell Iola received — the city received measurable, but still minuscule rainfall for eight consecutive days — May’s total is still a half-inch below what normally would have been received for the month.
If there is a glimmer of hope, Nickell said, it’s that parts north of Iola, near the source of the Neosho River, have received more rain, and thus fed into the river.
“But if it stays this dry, that water’s going to deplete pretty quickly,” he said.
Farmers who planted certain drought-resistant sorghums may be better equipped to handle the dry spell.
“What looks like wheat from the road may be rye,” Nickell said. “That’s a really good feed if it’s been put up right. There are certain things some farmers are doing to help themselves.”
And the drought hasn’t reached the severity of 2012, when farmers were faced with water restrictions.
