BEDFORD CO., Va. – Across Virginia, farmers are facing one of the toughest growing seasons in years as persistent drought conditions continue to impact crops, pastures and livestock operations.
For cattlemen, the lack of rain has created a difficult balancing act — finding enough feed, managing costs and making decisions that could affect their herds for years to come.
Bedford County cattlemen Curtis Martin and James Young are part of this group.
“The pastures are nowhere near where they need to be,” Martin said. “I’ve had to let some heifers go that I would have liked to have kept. Hopefully, they’ll do somebody good somewhere.”
One of the biggest challenges has been hay production.
Normally, cattle would transition away from hay and rely on growing pasture grass by the spring. But with grass struggling to grow, farmers are now using stored hay throughout the summer — putting pressure on supplies and increasing costs.
They say cattle normally only have to be fed off hay and other feed for 60 days out of the year. This year, they’ll be fed from hay for 365 days.
As hay demand ramps up, production in nearby states is down as multiple states struggle with the drought. Now, Young and Martin may have to look for hay in areas to the west, like Ohio and western Tennessee, to truck in hay for the winter. The problem? They’ll be competing with thousands of other farmers for that hay.
“This year, we’re running about one roll (of hay) through the acre instead of four,” Young said. “That’s a lot. And the losses are real in that because that’s real dollars. Diesel fuel, fertilizer, all that’s gone.”
The drought has also impacted the quality of available pasture. Dry, brown grass provides little nutritional value for cattle, forcing many farmers to look for other ways to keep their animals healthy.
As drought conditions stretch across Virginia and other parts of the East Coast, some farmers are turning to assistance programs through the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Wilmer Stoneman, the Virginia State Executive Director for the USDA’s Farm Service Agency, said the agency offers several programs designed to help producers manage the impacts of extreme weather.
“The United States Department of Agriculture has a vast tool bag to help producers work their way through the drought,” Stoneman said.
Those programs include assistance for livestock producers dealing with pasture losses, as well as support for moving animals, transporting hay and providing access to water.
One program available to farmers is through the USDA’s Livestock Forage Disaster Program, which provides payments to eligible livestock producers who experience grazing losses because of drought conditions.
Farmers can also use programs such as the Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program and crop insurance options to help recover some losses when weather prevents them from producing expected yields.
For cattle producers, insurance and risk management programs can help offset the rising costs of buying additional feed or replacing lost production.
“We take advantage of all the different insurance methods that are out there just to be on the safe side,” Young said.
Martin said programs like hay insurance can help farmers make decisions when drought creates unexpected expenses.
“It helps offset the cost if you have to purchase hay, if your quality is down and you’ve got to make up with some sort of supplement,” Martins said.
Farmers say the programs can help cover some of the money already spent preparing for the season, including costs for seed, fertilizer and equipment.
“You’re paying for your seed, you’re paying for your fertilizer, and you’re praying for rain,” Martin said.
Stoneman said these resources have become increasingly important, with farmers relying on drought assistance programs repeatedly in recent years.
“If you end up in a deficit, it kind of helps offset some of that cost that you incur on the front side,” Martin said.
But ranchers say their biggest concern may still be ahead.
If drought conditions continue, farmers worry about running out of water for their cattle — a much larger challenge than replacing hay.
For now, producers across Virginia are hoping for relief from the weather while relying on every available resource to keep their operations running.