Farmers dreading late summer rain causes late harvest

The rain and cool weather southeast Idaho is experiencing may be welcomed by those tired of summer, but for farmers, it’s a different story.

Andrew Mickelsen of Mickelsen Farms said that because of the rain, they’ve had to push back key phases in the potato harvesting process.

He told KIFI and KIDK, thankfully, most farmers have already harvested their grain, so the wet weather won’t affect those crops as much.

He said the real concern is for the potatoes.

The cool 2019 spring and the late summer rain has caused farmers to harvest late, some are even expected to harvest into October.

“Every day in October, you’re taking a risk. Every day in October, you’re worried it’s going to freeze,” Mickelsen said. “There’s been years in the past where they’ve frozen in the ground… That’s why for us, right now with it raining and pushing us back, it starts to get us concerned because it pushes us further and further back into that danger zone.”

Another concern for farmers is the dwindling daylight. Shorter days means less time for farmers to work, which could cause loss of crops.