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Flooded Fields Could Kill Crops
TIFFIN, IA (CBS2/FOX28) - The wet weather across the Corridor might not be causing major flooding in eastern Iowa's cities, but the rural areas aren't quite as lucky.
Flooding in farm fields may be causing damage to area crops in just a matter of days.
If a field or crops is completely submerged in water, plants can live for only four days, said Iowa State University field agronomist Virgil Schmitt. If temperatures get warmer, but the water doesn't evaporate, that time can be cut down to just one day.
Tiffin farmer Steve Swenka said he is frustrated because he knows parts of his fields are going to die. He also needs to get chores finished sooner rather than later. Swenka's hay crop is starting to become overly mature, and that can cause the hay to lose nutrients and taste.
That can cause Swenka problems, because he feeds that hay to the cattle he raises over the winter. If his cattle don't like the hay, it can force Swenka to pull food supplies from different sources.
Water-logged plants may be small overall this season, Schmitt said.
"Once that soil gets water logged, the plants have a hard time pulling the nutrients out of the soil. They're probably suffering more than meets the eye," Swenka said.
The erratic weather will likely stick around as climate change continues and temperatures worldwide keep rising, Schmitt said.