CONNECTICUT, USA — Connecticut farms have dealt with a largely dry season and drought conditions this summer. Much of the state went from moderate to severe drought conditions over the last several weeks.
While this rain comes as a welcomed change to the drought situation in Connecticut, some farmers said it’s late in the season for some of their crops.
“It’s a little too late but we’ll take it anyways because it will help build up the water table. It will also help sustain the crops that we still have,” said Kevin Bassette with Killam & Bassette Farmstead.
Some crops have already been harvested by this point for the farm in South Glastonbury and other farms around the state.
Bassette said the farm has been growing corn, lettuce, and peppers, among other produce this season. While he said crops like tomatoes did well despite the dryer weather, it was tough to get water out to fruits and the heat wave hurt some of their lettuce crops.
This season, they relied more on irrigation, which utilizes a system of pipes to bring water to their fields from a nearby brook.
“We were watering it because if we didn’t, we would have lost it,” Bassette said. “As for the rainfall, we didn’t get what we needed but I’d rather have it too dry than too wet like last year, where everything drowned and got rotted. We lost a lot of stuff last year.”
Before this recent round of rain, Connecticut would have needed about 12 inches to get out of the drought.
Commissioner of the Connecticut Department of Agriculture, Bryan P. Hurlburt, said for fruit and vegetable operations that struggled through the dry period, the rain won’t help this late.
“We’re far enough into the season that what’s gone is gone, so not getting rain for essentially July and August means we can’t recoup those losses,” he said. “It is good news for hay and some of our other crops that may get another cutting or harvest.”
The state’s Interagency Drought Working Group is scheduled to meet again Thursday to discuss drought conditions.
Elisha Machado is a reporter at FOX61 News. She can be reached at emachado@fox61.com. Follow her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
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