You-pick farms across Iowa are suffering from drought conditions

BRIGHTON — Kim Anderson normally would be disappointed if three customers canceled their picking appointments at her 5-acre Blueberry Bottom Farm near Brighton. Even more so after another four appointments simply didn’t show up.

But Anderson said she was almost glad they never came. She feared her 2,600-odd blueberry bushes wouldn’t produce enough berries for the large demand her farm sees during the growing season.

Anderson’s well started faltering during last summer’s heat and drought. Her irrigation system needs a flow of 11.5 gallons a minute to function; her well was pumping 8.5 gallons a minute.

As a result, many of her blueberry bushes — a water-intensive crop — became parched. For the first time in the farm’s five-season history, Anderson had to cancel a day of picking appointments because there weren’t enough ripe berries available.

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“I just never anticipated something like this, that the well wouldn't have enough water,” she said. “I'm afraid we're going to have to disappoint people.”

In 2015, Iowa’s horticulture industry generated $48 million in direct sales and an additional $32 million in other avenues like labor income and investor returns, according to the 2017 Iowa Commercial Horticulture Food Crop Survey.

About half of the state’s horticulture producers exclusively marketed directly to consumers — including through you-pick farms, like Blueberry Bottom Farm.

You-pick farms offer visitors the chance to harvest their own produce straight from the tree, bush or ground. Dozens of such businesses contribute to Iowa’s agritourism industry. But many of the featured specialty crops — particularly fruit — are more sensitive to climate stressors, like heat and drought, than traditional row crops.

This summer marks Iowa’s third year in a row of drought. The July 20 U.S. Drought Monitor Report depicted 100 percent of Iowa in abnormally dry or drought conditions.

You-pick farms across the state have suffered: Farmers report decreased yields, smaller produce and fewer customers to The Gazette. The consistently poor conditions are forcing some owners to adapt their businesses for a potentially drier future.

Drought, smoke taking a toll

The 5 acres of strawberry crops at Berry Patch Farm in Nevada in central Iowa struggled through the last two years of drought. Only about half of the crop survived.

This year, the entire crop failed. Co-owner Dean Henry said it’s the worst conditions he’s seen in his 56 years of operating the farm.

“We irrigate what we can, but we really can't keep up,” he said. He said the Iowa Department of Natural Resources has restricted his well water usage from 20 acres a day to 1 acre a day.

Specialty crops are typically water-intensive. Strawberry plants and blueberry bushes, for instance, need between 1 to 3 inches of water per week during the growing season. Iowa averaged just 2.9 inches of rain in June, almost 2.5 inches below normal. Even with irrigation, many you-pick farms in Iowa are lagging behind watering needs — and, in consequence, are seeing reduced yields and smaller produce.

The hot conditions also have affected customer experiences at the agritourism businesses. Some locations have reported a decrease in customer visits. If people do come, they aren’t staying as long as normal to take in the entertainment at the farms, like picnic tables or games.

Berry Basket Farm in Iowa City offered earlier hours and evening hours to combat the worst of the heat, co-owner Mark Gingerich said.

Smoke from Canadian wildfires also has clouded the you-pick industry.

Iowa skies have grown hazy several times this summer, prompting poor air quality some days. Anderson, of Blueberry Bottom Farm, said several of her customers canceled their appointments during especially hazy days. Her land sits on a river bottom where smoke tends to settle.

“A couple of those mornings, there was so much smoke I couldn't see the blueberry field,” she said. “It was just covered.”

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Pest and critter invasions

Drought doesn’t only leave crops parched. The dry conditions also can bring booming pest populations that capitalize on vulnerable drought-stressed plants.

Wilson's Orchard & Farm in rural Iowa City has seen more problems with thrips, spider mites and rust mites this year, farm co-owner Paul Rasch said.

Thrips — tiny insects with fringed wings that thrive in drier conditions — alone took the first third of the farm’s strawberry crop.

“We weren't really prepared for it, and we paid the price on that,” Rasch said.

Wildlife populations also interfere more with crops during droughts. As the animals find less food, water and cover in natural spaces, they may seek food in gardens and urban areas.

Blueyah Blueberry Farm in Oxford, west of Coralville in Johnson County, borders woodlands and conventional crops. Co-owner Jenna Hammerich said raccoons, deer and birds are searching for food more vigorously on her property than normal. They take water from livestock pens, and they dig up plants to feed on their freshly watered roots.

Critters, she said, dug up three of her 10 newly planted blueberry bushes this year.

“Some of the things they eat are not as plentiful,” Hammerich said. “We have become very good at caging. In previous years, we learned our lesson.”

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Silver linings

Colony Acres, an urban farm in North Liberty, had 20 acres of pumpkins planted on Memorial Day weekend. The unirrigated crops didn’t get a decent rain until almost a month later, delaying their sprouting.

Drought conditions also curbed the growth of 5 acres of sunflowers and about an acre of zinnias.

Even so, co-owner Dean Colony said he’s expecting plenty of pumpkins and flowers come fall — even if they’re a little behind schedule.

“Every year is different in farming,” he said. “It’s feast or famine. … You never know what might happen.”

Much-needed rain fell across most of Iowa in mid-July, with some locations getting as much as 5 inches. Farmers told The Gazette that rainfall helped crops grown later in the season to hang on, although they may be coming up slower.

Businesses are adjusting their plans as needed: Bloomsbury Farm in Atkins, for instance, pushed its Wine & Flower Fest back a week to make sure its 5.5 acres of zinnias and sunflowers would be in bloom.

Even tinier produce sizes come with a silver lining: Smaller fruit typically means more flavor, as the natural sugars are packed into a smaller package.

As summer droughts continue to plague you-pick farms, many of the businesses are making adjustments to better support their crops in the future.

At Colony Acres, the team grew rye grass on the pumpkin fields. The cover crop is rolled and crimped into the ground to create a bed of mulch to plant pumpkins into. The mulch helps keep the ground moist and lifts the pumpkins out of the dirt.

Anderson’s bushes at Blueberry Bottom Farm are now getting watered twice a day, thanks to new infrastructure in her fields. She installed two holding tanks that each store about 3,000 gallons of well water at a time. The reserves are just enough to produce the 11.5-gallons-per-minute flow the irrigation system needs to operate. The tanks also help settle iron from the water.

Even so, the system is cutting it close without any precipitation to count on.

“The climate situation is real,” Anderson said. “Any of those deniers out there — come on over and see the cracks in the ground here.”

Brittney J. Miller is the Energy & Environment Reporter for The Gazette and a corps member with Report for America, a national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on under-covered issues.

Comments: (319) 398-8370; brittney.miller@thegazette.com

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