‘Fields are going to be gone’: Waverly farmer loses crops to severe weather

WAVERLY, Neb. (KLKN) – Just as farmers wrap up this year’s planting season, some took a hit from Mother Nature on Tuesday night.

“There is a good chance that the taller corn that got shredded up will be hurt real bad,” said Tom Peterson, a farmer in Waverly.

Peterson grows both corn and soybeans and said, “Some of the fields are going to be gone, ruined, and some of them are going to be set back hard.”

After speaking with a few neighbors in the area, Peterson said some were hit a little harder than others.  He talked about ways they can move forward after the storm.

“Some guys are going to try and get in and re-plant right away,” Peterson said.  “Some guys are going to wait and take a wait and see and some guys are probably just going to say no I’m going to have to rely on some insurance to get me through this year.”

But waiting to see if the crops will survive can be a gamble.

“Seven to 10 days is going to put you at the end of June, and you’re getting kind of to the end of your window to plant anything corn-wise,” he said.

Another struggle for farmers is finding the seeds to re-plant crops.

“Now finding re-plant seed is difficult a lot of times because this time of year it’s been used already,” Peterson said.  “Some guys have already replanted some soybeans because we had a little late frost or late almost freeze.”

This season has not been easy for farmers, with drought, wildfires and now extreme weather. Some in our area will have to rely on insurance to make it through the season.

“It doesn’t give you your top end goal but they take a portion of what you normally raise over an average of years and then they will help make up some of that difference,” Peterson said.  “It’s not a way to make a living but it will help you survive.”

Despite the damage, farmers are still hoping for more rain throughout the summer.

“Deep underneath where the roots go, it’s a little bit too dry,” Peterson said.  “It doesn’t have the deep soil moisture to be able to feed that crop over the summer by itself, so we are going to have to continue to get good rains throughout the summer.”