USA - Hail wipes out portion of Kansas wheat crop

11.05.2016 1283 views
Hail damaged some Kansas farmer’s wheat crop on Sunday night. “Well, this is the worst case scenario for wheat farmers,” said Farmer Josh Patterson. It was supposed to be one of the best Kansas wheat crops in decades. On Thursday, the state Wheat Tour of 2016 called this year’s crop ‘uplifting’ and it looked that way too. That all changed for Patterson on Sunday evening. “I heard it hitting the tin on the shed, and I thought oh man, that is big hail,” Patterson said. The hail was big enough to wipe out about 100 acres of the fifth-generation farmer’s crop near Valley Center. “Even on the ones that are standing, you can see that it’s shattered, all of the filling seed out of here too,” he said. Patterson’s wheat was in good shape in late April after experts say a saving grace type of rain-swept through the state. On Monday, a majority of Patterson’s wheat was bent or broken. “Here we have got two good ones and you know three, four destroyed ones. That’s not a very good ration,” Patterson said. Patterson said he’s disappointed, however his hopes are high. “That’s all we can do as farmers is look forward, no need in focusing on the past just keep on going,” he said. “It’s still better than a drought.” Source - ksn.com
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