SMITH COUNTY, Texas — Severe weather season reminds farmers that the same weather that nourishes their crops can swallow them whole.
“It does a lot of damage,” Victor Zillmer, owner and operator for Zillmer Farms, said.
He does it himself and said it’s hard work, but also rewarding.
Zillmer said the weather damage largely depends on how strong the storm is and how far along he is in the growth season.
“You get 60 mile an hour straight line winds, and that will take a lot of things with a heavy load of fruit, knock them over and break them,” Zillmer said.
Anthony Brown with the Texas A&M Agrilife Extension agrees varying weather events affect crops differently. Recent high winds in East Texas are a perfect example.
“The wind was out of control. I'll put it that way. If I was a little lighter, I almost would’ve got blown away," Brown joked.
He said another plant kryptonite is hail.
"Most of these crops will not be able to take hail damage. So sometimes you would have to replant," Brown said.
As if farmers weren't already facing enough obstacles, East Texas is also in a drought. The Climate Prediction Center said this will last until at least to June 30 and could get worse.
The Smith County Agrilife Extension offers planting guides to maneuver the severe weather seasons ahead. Visit here for more.