LEAVENWORTH COUNTY, Kan. — With the Kansas City area bracing for the possibility of snow this week, the cold snap raised new concerns Monday for local farmers.
After months of dealing with flooding and heavy rain, the farmers who spoke to 41 Action News said the temps approaching or dropping below freezing could bring even more issues right before the harvest.
“We’ve been behind all year long because of the weather extremes,” soybean farmer Stephen Tuttle said. “We’re almost 30 days behind in our harvest because of weather. We’re really rushing to try and play catch-up.”
Bushels of soybeans waited to be picked Monday at Tuttle’s 60-acre farm in Leavenworth County as temperatures dipped into the 30s.
Tuttle said the conditions later this week could damage the crops.
“If we were to get a heavy snow, that could lodge and fall down and make it more difficult to pick the soybeans up off the ground,” he said. “It’s pretty crucial that we get a harvest done as quickly as possible.”
With farmers already experiencing a tough year, Tuttle said the timing of the conditions this week during harvest season brought plenty of worry.
“This is very crucial,” he said. “This is like our big paycheck for the year. ... Hopefully, the worst of it will go away from here. It’s kind of got everybody locked up a gear faster and trying to get things done quicker.”
