This time last year, the Gazette was writing about drought. It was a hard year. Farmers were despondent and those lucky enough to have it were calling in their crop insurance.

A year later, things are different. After a hot July, the rains have come. And come.

John Thompson, former President of the Prince Edward Federation of Agriculture, has been watching the rain on his family farm for over half a century. “The crops are in excellent shape for early August. Everybody is pretty happy about that. That’s not to say that we don’t still need August rain. We still really need some. It looks like there’ll be some showers. 

“But the crops have come so far that they can’t be nearly as bad as last year, and they could be very excellent—the soybeans and the corn.”

The light showers of early May delayed planting by a week or so, and June was a little drier than normal.

“By the time we got into July, actually, things were dry, a little. But the critical time for the wheat was past by July. The wheat crop, I would say, was better than average. Maybe not a record, but better than average.

“Some of the fields of corn and the soybeans were looking a little bit desperate for rain, but then we got these two recent rains that were very substantial. So I think the total for the month of June is probably below average, but it came at a critical time, it came towards the end of June. If they’re a little stressed out early in June, the roots will go down better. But that has a shelf-life, though. The rain came at a really good time.”

Mr. Thompson’s lifetime of experience has seen climate change. “There’s always been variability, but we do have a longer growing season than we did fifty years ago. First frost date is coming later in the fall. And I’d say a little more heat.

“There’s not much we can do other than roll with it. We don’t try to do the racehorse variety of corn that requires perfect conditions. We try to have one that’s reasonably drought resistant.

“This time last year, it was a depressing situation, as far as crops go in the County, more than maybe other places.  And the Soil and Crop Association said, ‘we should do something for the farmers here, cheer them up a bit … we need to have a Rainmaker Barbeque.’

“So that’s what they did last year. It was about the end of August. It got people together just so you could be conversing with few other people in the same business, to cheer up a bit.”

With a smile, Mr. Thompson adds, “having done it last year, they said we need to do this every year. So there’s another one coming up. It’s still the Rainmaker Barbeque, but I’m not sure that we need the rain! Well, it’s a week from now, and a week from now, we might think, ‘oh, gosh, it’s been hot. We’ve had not any rain in a week, and, we’re kind of wondering here…’”