WATCH: Final Laps: Johnson breaks record MORE: Click here to watch episodes of “Fantasy Showdown” before this week’s race. WATCH: Dale Jr.: misses pit road WATCH: Victory Lane: Johnson wins at Dover WATCH: Keselowski brings out caution

Georgia farmers have suffered through a dry spell just when they need water the most –when their plants are trying to set a crop. “It’s really turned around since early August,” Woodruff said. “But given some rainfall,most of the crop could rebound and give us some pretty good yields.” Pecans are suffering, too, said Tom Crocker, an extension horticulturist. Dry weatherthrough late August and early September cut production by as much as 5 million poundsper week. Crocker figures that since the first week of September, Georgia pecan farmershave lost about $7.5 million. This year, many farmers were looking forward to a “normal” year. There were some dryspots, but overall they had enough rain to make their crops through mid-July and earlyAugust. Then the regular rains stopped. The dry weather is affecting soybeans as well. Usually, the seeds are developing and fillingout in the pods during mid-September, said extension agronomist John Woodruff. But thisyear the pods and even leaves are falling off the stems. University of Georgia Extension Service scientists and economists figure dry-weatherlosses in peanuts, pecans and cotton at $56 million. And that figure climbs higher witheach new day without rain. One crop has escaped damage. Most of the corn had matured before the rains ended.Extension agronomist Dewey Lee said more than 75 percent of the state’s corn isharvested. An often-overlooked crop that is having a rough time: pastures. “We’ve got farmershaving to feed hay now rather than in November, when they usually start,” said RobertStewart, an extension animal scientist. Now that peanuts have set their crop, the dry weather is hindering the harvest. Beasleysaid the soil in about 25 percent of the peanut region contains lots of clay. When it driesout, “that ground becomes extremely hard. Trying to put digger blades into the ground,”he said, “is almost like trying to put them into concrete.” Cotton production is suffering, too, said Steve Brown, an extension agronomist. Heexpects the average yield will drop to about 700 pounds per acre, causing a loss of $34million. “I’d call it 100 percent, but some fields had less infection than others. So losses won’t benearly that high,” said John Beasley, an extension agronomist with the UGA College ofAgricultural and Environmental Sciences. The dry ground can pull peanuts off the vines as they’re dug out of the soil, so they can’tbe harvested. “It really adds insult to injury,” he said. On Sept. 1, the National Agricultural Statistics Service estimated that Georgia farmerswould average 2,650 pounds, down from earlier estimates of nearly 2,800 pounds. That’sa loss of about $15.6 million so far. The weather has hit cattlemen a double blow. With pastures playing out early, the grassfor hay hasn’t grown, either. Farmers are having to feed hay earlier and don’t have as muchof it, either, to carry them through the winter. Peanuts have been especially hard hit. The crop got off to a hard start with a viral disease,tomato spotted wilt, in nearly every peanut field. “The remaining corn is primarily in north Georgia,” he said. “And some of that is sufferingfrom a lack of moisture. But overall, it’s going to be a good year.” read more

To access this article REGISTER NOWWould you like print copies, app and digital replica access too? SUBSCRIBE for as little as £5 per week. Would you like to read more?Register for free to finish this article.Sign up now for the following benefits:Four FREE articles of your choice per monthBreaking news, comment and analysis from industry experts as it happensChoose from our portfolio of email newsletters