LICKING COUNTY, Ohio — The aftermath of heavy rain on farmland can sometimes be detrimental to crops. 

What You Need To Know

  • Severe storms and heavy rain led to floods that can affect farmland, making the soil too muddy and wet for crops

  • Farmers are worried about how the weather could impact planting season early next month if this weather persists

  • According to the Ohio Farm Bureau, agriculture is the No. 1 industry in Ohio 

“If we have this kind of weather in a week or so, it really could start affecting planting and setting us back,” said Luke Garrabrandt, owner of L. Garrabrandt farms in Licking County.

Garrabrandt has been working on his family’s farm for 14 years. Although he is trying his best to work with his overly wet farmland, experts said farmers worry about what planting season will look like. 

“It’s about Mother Nature cooperating during planting season, right?,” said Ty Higgins. “We don’t want to see this rain continue. That’s what’s on farmers’ minds right now as we get closer to getting the tractor fired up and the planters in the field.”

The heavy rain left Garrabrandt’s farm covered in thick mud, leaving him anxious about his crop this year when it’s time to plant. 

“The soil can only hold so much water and then any water in excess of that will run off the surface,” said Garrabrandt. 

The Ohio Farm Bureau said agriculture is Ohio’s No. 1 industry and that all Ohioans should care that these floods could affect everyone.

“We’re talking $12 to $15 billion into our state’s economy every single year,” said Higgins. “One in eight jobs tied to agriculture here in the Buckeye State. So farmers are important for a number of reasons, not to mention the three or, like me, four meals that we enjoy every single day.”