Cape Fear area farmers, garden centers facing challenges as dry conditions continue

BRUNSWICK COUNTY, NC (WWAY) — Blame it on the rain, or the lack thereof. 

Portions of southeastern North Carolina are being labeled as “abnormally dry.” It’s producing many problems, but the main concern is crops. 

AJ Stanaland owns Northwest Land & Cattle in Brunswick County. She said while a lot of her work surrounds cattle farming, she also grows crops. But this year, she said it has been a challenge. 

“I think everybody locally, probably across the state, with this drought is going to be a little bit behind. I think farmers are going to see more of a loss this year than expected and we were already expected to see a huge loss just because of our input costs,” Stanaland said. 

Over the past few weeks, there hasn’t been a substantial amount of rain making it difficult for crops to withstand the heat. Stanaland says no rain equals no crops and the impact is being felt countywide. 

Crystal Purdue owns The Purple Pepper. It’s a garden center in Delco just off Hwy. 74-76. She said her business is running dry while waiting for the rain. 

“So, smaller things, we’re just getting potted up a little bit earlier. At least a month earlier than it has in the past 3-4 years. Just trying to get ready and we still had a lot of loss,” Purdue said. 

She said she’s trying to make light of the situation by recommending less “water-thirsty” plants.

“You try to push the cactus a little bit more and the succulents and the bougainvillea because they are very forgiving on water. But the other stuff is like, ‘nope, I’m going to take a nap right now and stop blooming,’” Purdue said. 

Stanaland and Purdue both said they are staying hopeful that they and their fellow farmers will see showers in the coming days. As of right now, there may be a chance for rain later in the week but those “abnormally dry” conditions may remain in the forecast.