DYER COUNTY, Tenn. — Farmers in Dyer County, Tennessee watched as their crops, and their profits got a soaking.
Water from three different rivers flooded farm land in Dyer County and parts of nearby Lauderdale County.
Thousands of acres are said to be at risk in the battle against “Mother Nature” and it could get worse if the area gets any more substantial rainfall.
“We’ve probably got twenty to twenty-five thousand acres affected right now,” said Tim Campbell, Dyer County Extension Agent.
Campbell said farmers are in a soggy situation, especially in the Southwest corner of Dyer County.
Water flooded soybeans from three rivers: the Mississippi, the Obion, and the Forked Deer.
The bulk of the water that caused the Mississippi River to rise came from the Ohio River Valley.
It was a simple matter of too much water with nowhere to go.
“When it can’t get out of those tributaries and the Mississippi River is up at flood stage or above, then the water has nowhere to go but to back out into the tributaries and into the farmland,” said Campbell.
He said some farmers have taken to building makeshift levees to protect soybeans and other crops already in the ground.
“But we also have some small cotton acreages that are being affected. And we also have some corn and grain sorghum acres that are being affected as well,” he added.
Those efforts haven’t stopped water from covering many dirt roads in Dyer County.
However, Campbell said he doesn’t expect the flooding to get as bad as it did in 2011, but any more heavy rainfall will make it more difficult for water to drain off the land.
Campbell said as it stands now, farmers with flooded crops are watching the damage totals rise as well.
The cost of seed, fertilizer, chemicals and wear and tear on equipment will eat up their profits.
“Hopefully get a crop in early enough that it will make a decent enough crop to generate a decent yield in the fall,” said Campbell.
