Drought has killed his corn, with more crops to come. What is happening to local farmers?

Standing out in his corn field north of Conway, Steven Edge said he’s not sure if he’ll be able to harvest the crop this year.

The plants stand less than shoulder height when Edge said they should be taller than him. Breaking off an ear of corn, it’s half the size it normally is and the kernels look deformed. To top it off, the usual green leaves are crispy and yellow.

“When you work the whole year with the crop, get it planted and do everything you can for it and then watch it burn, it’s not a good feeling,” Edge said.

A drought has hit the south eastern United States this summer , with Horry County feeling the impact. As of July 10, it is one of 15 counties in a severe drought in the state, according to the South Carolina Department of National Resources. Portions of Horry County are now in an extreme drought, according to the National Weather Service in Wilmington, North Carolina.

Horry County has gotten 3 inches less of rain than normal over the past month, said National Weather Service meteorologist Adam Weiner on July 7. The lack of rain combined with hotter than average temperatures has created dry soil.

The 2024 Farmer’s Almanac predicted a hot and dry weather after May , which has proven to be true.

In the county, there’s a mix of crops being grown, said Benjie Andrew , who represents Horry County on the Agriculture Commission of South Carolina. Tobacco used to be the No. 1 crop but as it’s become less popular, farmers have had to diversify their crops.

There is still tobacco but now some of the largest harvests come from produce, corn and hay. Andrew also said there’s mostly small farmers in Horry County. Here’s why the lack of rain has farmers worried.

Corn suffering the most

Farmers across the county are feeling the impact of the drought, with multiple reporting that corn is the first crop to go. This is because it’s sensitive to hot and dry weather, said Loris farmer Trenton Tyler. For many farmers, their corn is too far gone to save, so they’re putting hopes into their other plants.

But if the lack of rain keeps up, farmers could see those crops lost to the drought as well.

“Tobacco is really suffering. We’re hoping that if we get some rain, we might be able to salvage some,” Tyler said. “The next two weeks are pretty critical.”

After tobacco, the next to go will be cotton, peanuts, hay and soy beans, said Tyler and Edge. Even for the crops that haven’t dried up, many are not growing the way they usually are.

By mid-July, Edge said he would usually have harvested hay three times but has only harvested once. He’s also feeding more hay to his beef cattle since there is less grass for them to eat, which eats into his yearly supply. Tyler said his peanuts and tobacco are at a standstill, not growing until they get more water.

Irrigation is not always possibility

One of the ways to keep the crops alive would be to bring in water from elsewhere, but that isn’t an option for some farmers in Horry County. Edge said he has around 2,100 acres of farmland, but it’s not all together. He leases land so his fields are sometimes miles apart.

Bringing in an irrigation system can be expensive, between labor and equipment costs. It costs more than its worth to irrigate the lands, Edge said, so he relies exclusively on rain.

Tyler uses a pond on his property to irrigate, so as the pond dries up, so does his ability to water his plants.

In order to feel secure about his crops, Edge said there will need to be several days of good rain over a couple weeks. One rainfall here and there won’t help long term because the soil is so dry.

Looking forward, farmers will be able to recover some losses if they have crop insurance. Andrew said he hopes to see federal or state relief sent to help farmers in a similar way as when floods happen.

“This is an act of nature just like floods are an act of nature,” Andrew said.