KHAS Weather
How the drought will affect this holiday season
We all know how the drought has immensely affected farmers and producers, destroying their crops and halting production nationwide, but the impact from the drought doesn't stop there.
News 5's Dara Newson tells us how it has affected pumpkin patches and the Christmas trees you purchase this year. For Country Harvest Pumpkin Patch, this year keeping the farm moist called for more physical labor. "We have several different patches and you'd just get done with them and you'd have to start over again right with the one you first started with," said Ronna Fredricks, owner of Country Harvest Pumpkin Patch. But with some categorizing the drought as a 21st century Dust Bowl, constant watering didn't alleviate every problem. "We have had just a few more bugs not a lot more," Fredricks added. Fredricks just can't seem to keep up with the weed growth that has spiraled out of control due to the dry conditions. "There's really nothing you can spray on pumpkins to kill the weeds, so its a lot of hosing and pulling, just a lot of hand work and early when they're young," Fredricks said. Thanksgiving and Christmas are just around the corner, but pumpkins aren't the only holiday items that have been affected by the drought. Beautiful green trees might look a little different this Christmas season, as well. "The colors this year will probably not be quite as good," said Dave Glass, owner of the Pine Patch Tree Farm. The Pine Patch Tree Farm has been managed and owned by Glass for the past seven years. "It's for sure the driest year," Glass added. "I've had to water the farm twice as much as normal." The drought has adversely affected landscaping across town. Some trees have completely died off. "I plant in April and usually plant 600 trees," Glass said. "I lost a few of those this summer, quite a few actually." But color still remains to be the biggest factor. Glass says tree shoppers can expect a slightly different green in their homes this season. "Our trees in Nebraska tend to be more yellow than trees further north and this year the drought will probably make that worse," Glass said. Thanks to irrigation, families will have their traditional pine or fir trees, cut just in time for the holiday. "They're still green, but a yellowish green," Glass said. For the Pine Patch, pre-tagging for Christmas Trees will begin at the end of October. The farm will open up for cutting around Thanksgiving. |
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