Wiregrass farmers looking for help

There have been times when Fred McKay has stood in his 210-acre cotton field in Midland City and praised the Good Lord above for the rain that came just in time to save his crop.

But there have been other times, including this year, when McKay and other Wiregrass farmers could swear the rain was sent by the devil himself.

Friday afternoon, McKay guided U.S. Rep. Bobby Bright, D-Montgomery, to the middle of his field. On one side of the dirt path, enough cotton lay on the ground to clothe Midland City. On the other side lay enough peanuts for all of Dale County to have brittle.

McKay said that just like too little rain can burn a crop, too much can drown one.

And they’re both disasters.

That is why around 40 Wiregrass farmers met with Bright Friday afternoon in the middle of McKay’s field to ask for his help in pushing the Secretary of Agriculture to declare Wiregrass counties a federal disaster area due to the significant rain this year.

Jesse Scott, who farms cotton and peanuts in Malvern, said the recent strong winds and rain pushed his damage estimates to between 33 and 54 percent.

Some farmers were fortunate enough to harvest peanuts between the rain. For most, however, plenty of peanuts and cotton remain in the fields. And for every day the crop is ready to be harvested but remains in the field due to the soil being too wet, money is lost.

According to the Alabama Weekly Crop Progress and Condition Report released by the Agricultural Statistical Service, rainfall in the Wiregrass in 2009 has been as high as 50 percent above normal in Eufaula to just 11 percent above normal in Dothan.

Several Alabama counties have already been declared disaster areas, triggering a process that makes farmers eligible for low interest loans to cover losses. Officials are currently assessing Wiregrass counties to determine if the damage rises to disaster level. If so, farmers here will have the same access.

But that doesn’t mean much to most farmers who say they can not qualify for the loans.

But Bright said help may be on the way.

He said legislation is currently making its way through the House and Senate that would make TARP money available to farmers who have suffered significant losses. Should the legislation pass, a quick disaster declaration could help farmers recoup their losses sooner.

Workers at the Wiregrass Research and Extension Center in Headland documented at least 14 days in September and 12 in October in which rain occurred, knocking farmers out of the field for almost a month. Combine that with the most recent rain event combined with strong winds, and much of the cotton and peanuts have been beaten to the ground and can’t be harvested.

“I know when the farmers get hurt, it hurts the whole country,” Bright said.