Ranchers dealing with drought have already sent some of the cattle to feedlots earlier than normal in many cases or they are considering that step.
Other adjustments may be coming if we have a dry winter, as is now expected. Here’s Lyon County Extension ag agent Brian Rees:
Farmers may have to take steps of their own, especially if they are relatively new to the profession. Rees says they will need to plan cautiously and may have to plant crops that mature earlier or don’t use as much water as other crops.
Much of northeast and east-central Kansas is at least five inches below normal for the year as the drought continues, and parts of southeast Kansas may be 10 inches or more below normal. All area counties are in severe to extreme drought north to south, according to the US Drought Monitor, and exceptional drought — the worst on the scale — is now just south of US Highway 400 in central Greenwood County.
