05/10/06 Wet weather delays spring planting

The past 13 to 14 months have been interesting. Six to seven years of drought ended, temporarily maybe, but it ended last spring. The rains came in April and May and that pushed back the planting of some crops. This year the rain fell again in April and it kept many farmers off the tractor. Tracy Walton was glad to finally see some blue sky over his Emmett farm. WALTON "We have not been able to get in the fields, haven't been able to plant especially some of them early row crops. It's probably going to really hurt them on their yields. Idaho's canals are full; rivers in many areas are running near flood stage because some reservoirs could overflow with all of the snow that's yet to melt in the higher elevations. For the first time since the late 1990's Idaho's big cash crops are behind on the planting schedule. WALTON "Between potatoes, onions and beets I don't know which one getting them late in the ground. All of them, they like to get them in early." Cooler temperatures will help keep the snowpack from melting quickly but heat units are what some farmers need. Tomorrow, we'll look at the rivers and streams which could be running high for a couple of more months. Voice of Idaho Agriculture