West Versus East: A Tale of Two Weather Stories
Mother Nature has been active across the U.S., with a tale of two weather stories unfolding this summer that has greatly impacted dairy farms. Weather effects all areas of a dairy farm—from calves, to cows calving, to milk cows and crops.
The rising thermometer out west has made the work to ensure cows are cool and comfortable much harder. In eastern Washington, Jason Sheehan, a fourth-generation dairy farmer who runs J & K Dairy located 45 minutes outside of the Tri-Cities, faced 115 degrees last month, plus a week where temperatures were over 100 degrees for a week straight. Sheehan milks 3,000 cows and farms 1,400 acres of cropland, with all the feed raised going back to feed his herd. “The heat wasn’t as brutal for us compared to those on the western side of the state,” he said.
The eastern side of the Evergreen state normally gets warm weather. However, the heat coming early in the summer, coupled with the extent of the extreme heat made the intensity sizzle, especially for dairy farmers. “It only cooled off to 80 at night,” Sheehan adds. “It was almost like California or Arizona weather.”
Half of J & K Dairy’s cows are housed in an open lot and the other half in freestalls. They are equipped with fans and soakers in the holding pen, over the cows, plus shades. Sheehan says the freestalls allow for the cows to stay cooler compared to the open lots, where the cows would group under the shade and didn’t travel to the bunk to eat, as it is located outside in the full sun.
According to Sheehan his milk co-op was down 20% on milk production due to the hot stretch in June. J & K Dairy saw a decline in milk production at their dairy but believes the heat abatement – with shades and soakers – allowed their cows to nearly get back to previous production levels.
When it comes to newborn calves, getting their start in the extreme heat is “tough” according to Sheehan.
Two years ago, after dealing with summer heat, Sheehan saw the need to install shade cloth over the fresh cow pen. “Our next project will be to install shade cloth over all the feed areas,” Sheehan notes. “This will hopefully drive more cows to the bunk when hot weather strikes.”
When Sheehan looks out at his crops, he says they are looking tough and inconsistent. “We are fortunate, as we don’t have issues with any irrigation and luckily have cooled off to 88 degrees,” he notes.
Taking care of employees is essential, especially as they work during the heat. “Our employees who handle irrigation and have to work out in the heat start early and finish early as well as take plenty of water breaks to ensure they are also staying cool and comfortable.”
A Different Weather Story Unfolds in the Northeast
If only there was a way one could take some of the hot weather and send it east, as a different story unfolds in Schodack Landing, N.Y.
More than twelve inches of rain has fallen since July 1 near Albany, N.Y., where Dutch Hollow Farms resides. Owned and operated by the Chittenden family, with the partnership of brothers, Brian, Alan and Nathan, as well as their parents, Paul and Melanie. Dutch Hollow milks 800 Registered Jerseys and farms 1,800 acres of corn, alfalfa and grass hay.
Spring fieldwork began on time for the Chittenden family with slightly dry field conditions. They began planting at the end of April and they report the first two weeks of May were wet and early corn ground became crusted over. Unfortunately, they had to replant three-fourths of it, but according to Brian Chittenden, their crops looked awesome at the end of June.
With historical flooding and rain events that brought 2 to 4 inches of rain per hour, the Chittenden’s have only had three days without measurable rain since July 1. While Dutch Hollow’s fields are saturated, with a dozen inches of rain tallied so far this month, they feel fortunate. To the south of them, 20 inches of rain has been recorded and to the north, 14 inches. “We were fortunate to get second cutting silage in the end of June,” Chittenden says. “Others weren’t so lucky.”
Still, the Chittenden’s have not turned a wheel since. Corn side-dressing, fungicide and post fieldwork has not been done either. “Alfalfa, corn and beans have all gone backward and stood still,” he notes. “Anything that went in late is in trouble and insurance claims are going in.”
One of Chittenden’s neighbors states he has lost 75% of his soybeans, as they have just plain drowned out and most have made little to no dry hay yet this year. “It will take a week of good weather before we would even consider trying to get out there,” Chittenden adds.
Thankfully back at the dairy, milk production has held steady. The worries for Chittenden’s shift back to their crops, knowing they are behind. “We had a week in June with lows near 40°F and highs barely made it to 50,” Brian says. “So early corn, on well drained fields, still looks good. However, anything that was planted late is bad.”
Mother Nature’s extreme weather continues to play out throughout the U.S. Out east, time is needed to dry fields out and the Chittenden’s are aware that harvest is likely to be late this year. Out west, time is also needed as Sheehan’s cows recover from the extreme heat.
