Vt. farms struggle as fluctuating weather patterns become more common

HARTLAND, Vt. (WCAX) - Three weeks of sunny weather with little to no rain has many people across the region celebrating. But not everyone is happy about the heat, including some farmers who are dealing with fluctuating weather patterns that experts say are becoming more common.

While we are not technically seeing drought conditions in the Upper Valley, dry weather is affecting life on the farm.

Kerry Gawalt and her husband have owned the Cedar Mountain Farm in Hartland since 1999.

"One of the things that we have noticed in the 25 years that we have been here is definitely more changes in swings in the weather," Gawalt said.

The cows make the milk for their Cobb Hill cheese processed on-site. But little rain means grazing needs to be limited these days.

"If it keeps up with the hot and the dry, it's the combination, we definitely are going to have to start feeding more hay to our cows," Gawalt said.

Experts say farmers need to prepare for periods of heavy rain, and then long stretches of no rain at all.

"How do we overcome those ups and downs because they are more frequent," said Heather Darby, a crops and soil expert with the UVM Extension. "People's crops are drying out really, really quickly. The quality of the corn has been pretty poor in some areas."

But she says other farms are faring just fine with the dry weather because farming is not just about weather, it's also about the location.

Only a small section of the Upper Valley is considered abnormally dry right now and even that is one step below drought stage.

"We have one farm still so wet that they can't even get out in the fields still," Darby said.

Back at Cedar Mountain, more trees are being planted to shade the grass keeping it plush. Drip irrigation on the flowers and vegetables provides more consistency. And no-till gardening techniques are keeping more moisture in the ground around the plants.

"It's a lot of work to put in creating long-term solutions," Gawalt said.

Farmers say educating the public about how dry weather affects day-to-day operations gives consumers a better connection to the working landscape.