The Wiregrass, the state's primary production area for peanuts, is extremely dry. Dallas Hartzog, an agronomist with the Alabama Cooperative Extension System at the Wiregrass Regional Research and Extension Center in Headland, says the lack of rainfall is seriously impacting farmers. This dry weather is causing a number of problems. Both Henry County Extension agent Jimmy Jones and Houston County agent Richard Murphy agree with Hartzog's assessment. Henry County has suffered under dry conditions the last three years and yields have been down.
Conditions are no better in neighboring Houston County.
The first problem Hartzog points out is that while about 100,000 acres are already planted in peanuts, another 100,000 acres remain to be planted. But they're battling a crop insurance deadline of May 25. To be eligible, insured acres must be planted on or before May 25. In general, he says it's the area's larger growers who have more acres left to plant. But crop insurance is not the growers' only worry.