Does climate change impact local farmers?
Effingham County Farm Bureau president Kent Mellendorf, 66, has been farming since the early 1990s. On his 1,000 acres of farmland, he raises beef cattle and grows wheat, corn, soybeans, grass hay and alfalfa. He also grows wheat as a cover crop on about 100 of his acres to help hold the soil in place and retain nutrients.
Over the last 20 to 30 years, Mellendorf has noticed the spring planting window has gotten shorter and there has been less snow. In the last few years, he’s noticed that when it rains, it pours.
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