Farmers Talking About Dry Winter

VERMILLION, SD - Hundreds of midwest farmers made sure to plant themselves inside the Dakota Dome in Vermillion this weekend for the Dakota Farm Show. 

And while they were there to look at all the latest equipment and technology, you could find a lot of farmers talking about the strange winter we've had this season.

"In our area right where we are, there's been winter wheat planted that isn't up yet, and it was planted in September," Arthur Hertz from Fairfax, South Dakota, said.

Hertz has been farming all his life, and while the spring and early part of the summer brought plenty of moisture, he hasn't had any rain or snow since the 12th of June at his Fairfax farm.

"Within five miles each way they've had some moisture and even some snow this fall, we haven't had a bit of snow yet," Hertz said.

And some farmers, who've been farming for quite some time, say they haven't seen conditions this dry in nearly 50 years.

"1958 or 1959 were quite similar which is 50 plus years ago, 59 was a total disaster drought wise," Delma, South Dakota, farmer Leroy Weisser said. 

"The lumps are so hard, they're harder than rocks, you can drive right over them and they wouldn't break," Larry DeSmet said.

But due to all the moisture that the state received in the spring, Hertz says that this fall he harvested one of his best crops because even with the lack of moisture in the later part of the summer, every morning he had a heavy dew on his land.

"That moisture kept these crops going and this new kind of corn and the new knid of beans and stuff they got now boy they'll tolerate the cold and with that heavy dew every morning we raised terrific crops this year," Hertz said

And while the harvest turned out to be a great crop for many of these farmers, they hope that the ground softens up before planting season.