Local agriculture left out in the cold
Ashlee Davis
Issue date: 1/26/10 Section: News
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This is South Georgia. When the weather drops below so much as 60 degrees during the winter months, we as a region immediately take action to arm ourselves against the cold by bundling up with scarves, gloves, and mittens. However, this year is a bit different.
"Georgia hasn't had that kind of weather in a long time," Dean of the School of Agriculture and Natural Resources Tim Marshall said.
The temperature has been sustained at about 20 degrees Fahrenheit for a couple of weeks at a time. Some cold weather during the winter months is not unusual for this area. The weather can dip into the lower twenties and upper teens on some days, but it is usually this way for brief periods.
While some of us have noticed the damage created by the cold to gardens and plants at home, this is only a fraction of what those in the agriculture industry are noticing. Plants have been victims of the cold and are severely damaged or even ruined by freezing temperatures. Fruit and vegetable crops, such as oranges, have suffered greatly. A large amount of cotton was also left in fields, unable to be harvested.
Plants are not all that is being affected by the chill. Livestock suffers as well. Confined livestock, such as poultry and swine industries, for example, have a problem with water lines freezing. This is an issue, particularly regarding waste management.
"You've got the freeze problem. Not only that, but you have livestock that have a comfort zone," Marshall said.
For example, cattle are hardy animals that can grow a thicker coat to guard them comfortably from cold temperatures during the winter months, but they can only manage this type of weather for so long. Locally, this poses a threat to the cattle industry. The farm here had several steers ready to ship to Iowa, but they were unable to make the trip because of severe cold weather in the North.
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