With most of the snow gone from the fields in the area, local farmers are turning their attention to the planting season later this spring.  Jim Wautier of Church-Site Farms in Brussels says the recent melting of snow and precipitation should not impact the winter crops as long as we don’t get a lot of freezing and thawing weather.  He expects the frost to come out of the ground fairly quickly, with high temperatures forecast in the mid-40s next week with little precipitation.  The focus is for farmers to get their machinery in working order and ready to go when planting starts next month.

Wautier adds that if the fields dry up in time, corn will be planted by the end of April, followed shortly after by soybeans. He says last year’s wet spring forced many farmers to delay their planting much later in the spring than usual, but crops rebounded in late summer for a successful harvest.