The weather has not been what many of us hope for during the summer. For people who rely on it this time of year to make a living like farmers, it's taking a toll.
Most farmers in our area need more sun but instead, the summer has been a real soaker so far.
"With like a month of rain we really had a lot of trouble getting stuff in. A lot of the seeding equipment doesn't work in the rain and it's hard to cultivate the land when it's sopping wet," said Eric Shubert of Blue Blaze Farm in Monroe County.
"It makes it kind of hard to get into the garden. We do everything by hand, hand cultivating," said Jeffrey Henry of Cranberry Creek Farm in Henryville.
While some growers worry their typical summer money makers like tomatoes and peppers aren't popping up like they have in the past, Brian Bruno with Apple Ridge Farm in the Saylorsburg area said other crops are coming in handy.
"Lettuce, spinach, the things that like the cold weather are doing great," Bruno said.
Farmers know it helps a farm to flourish if the bounty is bigger.
With the recent wet weather slowing the growth of some crops farmers are finding other ways to supplement their incomes, like bread making.
The bread, along with the crops that are ready now at Apple Ridge Farm, like green beans, are items farmers want to sell soon after they're picked. That's also why area growers are glad they now have more options at farmers markets like one in Monroe County that happens more than just on Saturday.
The one along Main Street in Stroudsburg runs Wednesdays from 3 p.m. until 7 p.m., which could give farmers the much-needed boost that seems to have washed out from a lack of sun.
Most farmers in our area need more sun but instead, the summer has been a real soaker so far.
"With like a month of rain we really had a lot of trouble getting stuff in. A lot of the seeding equipment doesn't work in the rain and it's hard to cultivate the land when it's sopping wet," said Eric Shubert of Blue Blaze Farm in Monroe County.
"It makes it kind of hard to get into the garden. We do everything by hand, hand cultivating," said Jeffrey Henry of Cranberry Creek Farm in Henryville.
While some growers worry their typical summer money makers like tomatoes and peppers aren't popping up like they have in the past, Brian Bruno with Apple Ridge Farm in the Saylorsburg area said other crops are coming in handy.
"Lettuce, spinach, the things that like the cold weather are doing great," Bruno said.
Farmers know it helps a farm to flourish if the bounty is bigger.
With the recent wet weather slowing the growth of some crops farmers are finding other ways to supplement their incomes, like bread making.
The bread, along with the crops that are ready now at Apple Ridge Farm, like green beans, are items farmers want to sell soon after they're picked. That's also why area growers are glad they now have more options at farmers markets like one in Monroe County that happens more than just on Saturday.
The one along Main Street in Stroudsburg runs Wednesdays from 3 p.m. until 7 p.m., which could give farmers the much-needed boost that seems to have washed out from a lack of sun.
