Down on the Farm with Ben Simons: "It's been very difficult to get three to four days without rain"

STAR HILL- North Country farmers have endured both ends of the spectrum to the extreme for when it comes to weather so far this year.

That's what Benjamin Simons says. He is a local dairy farmer from Starr Hill, near Remsen and Steuben, NY and has become a recognized figure in agriculture since arriving here from the New England States in the 1980's.

With a track record of advocating for and teaching agriculture, Simons has agreed to join our North Country News from time to time and discuss all the latest news from the farming and agriculture industry. 

For his debut segment of 'Down on the Farm,' Simons focuses on the weather pattern, which has proved to be very frustrating since spring. "We had such a dry May for planting the crops, like corn and soybeans," he said.

"And now here we are getting into late August and approaching early September and we're starting to think about chopping our corn. We're going to be challenged to be able to harvest that corn if this continues," meaning rain, he explained.

"It's been very difficult to get three to four days without rain."

Listen to our debut segment with Ben Simons here:

This wet pattern comes along on the heels of a bone dry spring, specifically the month of May, as Simons recalls doubt that crop seeds would even be able to germinate then. 

In July, the official rainfall total for Bonnville,NY reached just north of 4.75". For the Highmarket area, official rainfall totals sat at 7.75" and 6.35" for West Martinsburg (Rector Road). 

So far in August, rainfall totals have already climbed over 12" as of earlier this week for Rector Road. Over 11" of official rainfall has already been reported for Highmarket and just shy of 8" for Boonville, NY.

The Farmers' Almanac originally predicted a hot summer for the U.S., specifically hot and dry for the Northeast.

Benjamin Simons image.