Cool, Wet Weather Slowing Tobacco Setting

Source from:  By Walt Reichert/Sentinel-News Associate Editor 05/25/2006

Farmer Ray Tucker set seven-and-a-half acres of tobacco Sunday and about the same amount on Monday. He has set just more than 13 acres altogether. He has a long way to go. The cool, wet weather of the last few weeks and the light, but almost daily, rains, have kept farmers out of the fields. According to the Kentucky Agricultural Statistics Service (KASS), tobacco setting, as of Friday, May 19, is at 23 percent, slightly behind the five-year average. Drier weather this week may help farmers catch up. Some farmers across the state have also reported cold damage to their crops, according to KASS. So far, this month is on track to be the second coldest May on record though emerged crops, including corn and tobacco have not been hit by frost. Farmers this month have found themselves in the grips of a prolonged "blackberry winter," the cool spell that typically arrives when the blackberries bloom. While recent rains have come frequently, they have not been heavy; KASS reported about .8 inch of rain last week. The region has received 8.3 inches of rain since April 1. For Tucker, the setback means he will be awhile getting his entire crop in. Last year, Tucker decided to cut back on his grass-cutting business and do more farming. He planned to increase tobacco production from 13 acres in 2005 to 40 acres in 2006. Other tobacco farmers in the area are also increasing production though not as sharply as Tucker; they plan to take advantage of Philip Morris's offer of price incentives to burley growers who expand their poundage by as much as 25 percent. Cool weather has also slowed soybean planting. Farmers report 26 percent of the crop planted as of May 19, compared to the five-year average of 34 percent. On the other hand, the drier-than-average spring has allowed corn planting to outpace averages. Corn planting is nearly 95 percent complete compared to the 85 percent five-year average, according to KASS. Enditem