By Clint Thompson
Hurricane Debby’s impact in North Florida is not isolated to one single crop, though it has left multiple growers in Hamilton County concerned about their corn.
Keith Wynn, a crop consultant, relayed information he’s received from producers who had varying reports of impact from the storm this week.
“It is hit and miss. You can go to one field and it might not be too bad, and then one farmer told me he had some fields that probably had 50% damage,” Wynn said. “I had one farmer who said the corn lodged in the row and didn’t really affect them because they’re picking and will be able to finish in two or three days. He said if it would have blown it across the row, it would have been a bigger problem for him.”
It is the second year in a row the region has been impacted by a storm. Last year it was Hurricane Idalia. But the timing is much different.
“When we had Hurricane Idalia come through last year, it was later in the season. They were already finished picking corn. This hurricane came through earlier in the season when they just started harvesting good. There is an issue with the corn,” Wynn said. “People are harvesting corn right now and there’s some cornfields that got blown around. They did have some damage in the corn.
“We’re at peak of harvest right now. Everybody is trying to get it out of the field right now. If the hurricane comes in September or the end of August, they’re already done picking.”
Wynn said there is about 3,000 corn acres in Hamilton County. There is also 30,000 corn acres in the nearby Suwanee Valley region.