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Pumpkin farmers pinched by economy, drought: Pumpkin growers grapple with higher fuel costs and "the driest summer I've seen in the past 10 years."
(Daily Press (Newport News, VA) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Oct. 3--Local farmers might have trouble dealing with the effects of weather and the fluctuating economy as pumpkin season begins.
"This was the driest summer I've seen in the past 10 years," said Steve Berryman of College Run Farms in Surry County.
This summer ranked fifth-driest for the Norfolk area, with precipitation nearly 6 inches below average, according to the National Weather Service in Wakefield. August was ranked the second-driest on record, with less than 15 percent of the average precipitation for the month.
A sixth-generation farmer, Berryman knows how to combat the weather, but this summer proved challenging.
"I irrigated, but it was just too hard to keep the water on the pumpkins this year," he explained.
Berryman's pumpkin crop looks good this year, but there are fewer carving-style pumpkins than last year.
Cammie Flanagan, owner of Belmont Berry and Pumpkin Farm in Mathews County, planted her pumpkins later in the year, which helped avoid big drought problems. This year's pumpkins are about the same size as last year's crop, she said.
Last week's rain kept families from visiting many patches' opening week. A record of nearly 3 inches fell in Hampton Roads on Sept. 25, breaking that date's previous record of 1.05 inches, the weather service said.
"The crop this year looks good, but you never know the toll the rain will take on the crops," Flanagan said.
Along with dealing with the rain, Flanagan had to recut the corn maze at Belmont, after a twister from last week's storm cut through the center, she said.
Rising fuel and agricultural product prices provided another challenge for farmers by almost doubling since last year, according to the Virginia Farm Bureau Federation.
Berryman spent more money on fuel for irrigation this year than in the past nine years since the farm opened.
"Double trouble -- you burn more fuel and pay more for it," he said.
As a result of high fuel and fertilizer prices, Berryman raised the price of pumpkins for the first time in a few years.
High fuel prices have also caused school field-trip cancellations. A Hopewell school has canceled one class field trip to the farm over continuing high gas prices.
Berryman might bring pumpkins to schools, but that depends on how expensive the trip would be for him.
Despite past cancellations, all but three days in October are booked for school field trips.
"There are more kids this year than in the past," said Jordan Berryman, Steve's wife.
"There are one or two schools that are on the fence still."
Belmont is expected to have just as many, if not more, school trips to the farm this fall over last year.
Flanagan wonders whether families will be the difficult sell this year because of high gas prices.
She plans on raising the price on the bigger pumpkins this year. The rest of the prices will stay the same as last year to keep families coming back to the farm.
Flanagan said, "You just have to let the chips fall where they may. If they come, they come. Farming is a gamble."
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Copyright (c) 2008, Daily Press, Newport News, Va.
Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.
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