Mother Nature is showing no love to North Texas lately. Not only are we heading into the third year of a serious drought, but now we have faced multiple "late" freezes. All this means tough times for farmers and all those who rely on Mother Nature to help them out in business.
From the Pecan Shed's perspective...the outlook for next year's crop is not so good. We were already planning on a shorter crop due to the lack of rain, but last week's freeze wiped out a good portion of our crop...especially the Wichita and Pawnee pecans. Tonight we are expected to get yet another freeze (after several 80+ degree days). This has the potential to do even more damage to our already heavy hit crop.
I know we are not the only ones suffering. Pecan growers across Texas and Oklahoma are facing situations similar to ours. We have friends who own lawn service companies that have felt the pinch from Mother Nature as well. In addition to all this, we recently were told a wonderful business here in Wichita Falls, Smiths Gardentown, has had to temporarily close down due to the drought. Smiths has been in business for several generations here in Wichita Falls, and many people (including my family) buy all there flowering plants from Smiths. However, due to the drought and water restrictions, Smiths has experienced a severe drop in sales which has caused them to temporarily close. I know we all hope they will open up again soon!
The backlash from Mother Nature has had an impact on all of us. It hurts farmers and all those in agriculture, it also hurts vendors who rely on agriculture business (such as fertilizer and equipment companies), and ultimately it hurts the consumer as well. When crops are in short supply prices do go up (it is the simple rule of supply and demand in our economic structure).
We all hope and pray for rain...for our crops, for our animals, for livelihood...for our sanity and our spirits.
Lately, I have referred to Mother Nature as a "Crazy Ex-Girlfriend"...if she isn't seething with hot anger… she is freezing you out with the cold shoulder. The good news is Mother Nature is just like any other woman...she can change her mind. It was not that long ago (2007) that we had record rainfall...so there is hope. Just like a Crazy Ex-Girlfriend we will just have to wait and see what mood Mother Nature is in tomorrow.
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