How Excess Rain is Impacting This Growing Season

Has anybody seen the sun? 

This may sound obvious, but plants need sun to grow. It is not new news to any of us that the rain has been plenty and the sun has been minimal this spring. Not only has the rain put a bit of a damper on many people’s weekends (ehem, specifically Saturday) plans for grilling, hiking and boating, but the rain is hugely impacting our local farms. 

There has been a slow maturing of almost every crop this year due to the lack of sunshine and too much rain. Even though our local farmers take precautionary approaches, like raised beds, knowing rain is a significant part of New England spring, this year’s weather has still had some pretty drastic effects on the land.

Deep Meadow Farm in Ascutney, Vermont suffered a significant loss to their strawberry crop.

Even though plants love and need rain, and they are resilient, they can only take so much of a good thing. They need sun, and they need sun now!

Our friends from Provision Farm and Forest lost a hefty amount of shiitakes due to high moisture which causes mushrooms to all bloom at once.

Not only has the excess moisture been impacting the way crops are growing, some local farmers have also mentioned that the haze from the Canadian wildfires have been creating some barriers. On the days where we have had sun, the haze from the fires has diffused the light, making sunlight less potent. 

Overall, we know that plants need a healthy balance of sun and water to grow. Currently, we are experiencing a weather imbalance which is a reminder of how much we rely on our earth and the local and regional weather, to grow our food. We are not fully in control! This season has been a great reminder to slow down and respect the process of each unique growing season. 

Our farmers adapt the best they can. And even though we may be anxious to get our hands on all our favorite spring and summer vegetables and fruits, we can remember to have patience with the season and weather patterns that we are in. 

Get creative with cooking what we DO have, and know that it is even more exciting when we get to enjoy the crops we’ve been patiently (and excitedly) awaiting! AND even more important than ever to shop local and support our hardworking farmers!