Range of rainfall sprouts thankfulness or curses

By MONETTE TAYLOR | South Central Texas Edition

Rain A Comin' ... These cows seem to be waiting for the cooling rain that was being promised by the threatening skies. -Staff photo by Carolyn Rost

July 25, 2002 -- In some areas of South Central Texas, such as parts of the Hill Country where reports of up to 50 inches of rain have fallen in the past few weeks, some producers may be thinking of building an ark.

Other areas, such as parts of the Coastal Bend region, are basking in delight at the slow, intermittent rainfall that has turned brown, dry grass into lush pastures, with livestock "hip deep" in the grass.

While weather professionals continue to watch for the next system to arrive, agricultural producers who have had too much rain are in a clean-up process which will not happen over night, nor will it be easy.

In El Campo, Jimmy Roppolo at the Farmers Co-op said there has been a lot of damage to crops in the area, due to the heavy rainfall. Sorghum producers are suffering from sprout damage, which may discount the crop, although the nutritional value for cattle and chicken feed should not be hurt.

Rain Came ... Traffic on Highway 97 pass through water on the roadway caused by the Guadalupe River flooding. -Staff photo by Carolyn Rost

Roppolo said the cotton crops are in real trouble. Much of the cotton was blooming, and the bolls that had formed are suffering from mildew and are rotting on the plants. He predicts that, at this point, there will probably be a one-fourth to one-half bale loss per acre in the area.

Rice is down in some spots, but Roppolo said rice producers should be okay. They just have to "hope to have dry weather for a while."

Just outside of Seguin on Highway 123 toward San Marcos, Ralph Patlan of the Old Timers Farm and Feed said the milo is sprouting in the heads, and many producers are just trying to clean up the fields and take the loss.

Patlan said the immediate area has had more rain so far this year than in 1998, but it has been more scattered and hasn't produced the magnitude of flooding, except on the Guadalupe in the area.

One of the biggest problems livestock producers in that area are facing is hoof rot. Patlan said he has sold a lot of medication for it, due to the rain and mud. Since much of the rain has not run off the land, once the ground is saturated, it pools and creates huge mud holes.

Along with this pooled water come the mosquitoes and flies.

In Seguin, Vickie Caddell of Pape's Pecan House said they have ag producers purchasing lots of products to kill grasshoppers, fleas, fire ants, scorpions, and mosquitoes. Caddell noted, though, she hasn't heard of anyone concerned about West Nile Virus (WNV) that is rapidly approaching from the Houston area. WNV is transported by mosquitoes after they have fed on WNV-infected birds. Mosquitoes pass the virus to an animal, mostly horses, when they seek a blood meal.

With all of the standing water in South Central Texas, producers need to be vigilant about getting rid of as much as possible. Areas of constant water, such as ponds or creeks, the water can be treated with bt products, such as "mosquito dunks."

In Waller, the eight inches of rain that has fallen in the last three weeks has hurt the rice crops. Sandra Hold at the Rice Dryer Inc. said although there has been no flooding in the area, the rice was "drowning in water," yet that the corn has dried up. Also, there was too much water for the peanut crop in the area.

Hold said ranchers are happy because their hay fields and pastures are thriving, so they won't be out as much money on feed for their animals.

In Kerr County, Eddie Holland, Extention agent, said while the Kerrville area has had a lot of rain, they haven't had as many problems as the media has reported.

"This is the spring we've been missing for the past five years," said Holland in the dead of summer.

Rainfall has been in scattered amounts, but up to 50 inches have fallen in the Bandera area where he said there has been a loss of livestock, equipment, and property. The Comfort area also suffered from flooding, with losses to producers.

According to Dr. Buddy Faries, Extension veterinarian, livestock needing veterinary treatment for injuries and wounds would require a tetanus shot, while severely injured and dead animals should be "humanely destroyed and disposed of using sanitary methods such as burning or burying with at least six feet of dirt."

Faries said some of the younger animals may have suffered too much stress, and will not live, either.

As far as the livestock auctions, Janie Garcia at the Atascosa Livestock Auction said they had had about 18 to 19 inches of rain and that their sell count was way down last week. Usually, they have about 1,600 to 1,800 head of cattle, but it was down to about 250 head. She said some producers couldn't get to the animals to bring them to market.

Mike Brzozowski of the Hills Prairie Livestock Market said although there had been rain, it didn't affect their auction that much, due to preconditioning and already having a line-up of animals for the auction. He said with all the moisture, producers were sure to see cattle with low weights "fattening up" quickly from the added grass.

H.B. Moreland in the Watterson community said pastures were looking good in that area, but the flies were driving the cattle crazy. Moreland also pointed out there was some soil erosion in the area.

In areas where cattle have been lost or misplaced, producers have several alternatives in searching for their animals. Those that have brands or tags may be identified with records at the county clerk's office at the local courthouse.

Also, producers can call the Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raiser's Association in Fort Worth, (817) 332-7064, or the Independent Cattlemen's Association in Austin, (512) 836-1321, for brand record information.

County sheriff's departments may also have reports on cattle that have wandered to another pasture or area.