Local farmers feeling the impacts of the latest coastal storm

Many of us enjoyed a day off from work on Wednesday due to the heavy rain and snow, but for some, a day off wasn't a good thing.

Local farmers across Delmarva say they are now going to have to put in extra hours to make up for lost time, and they say their crops are suffering as a result.

Mitch Burns, a farmer at Burns Farms said, "Every time we get an inch of rain, it puts us back about a week."

The back to back coastal storms which have brought both flooding and snow are taking their toll.

Burns said, "It's been terrible. Like all the farmers around, we're all trying to get out in the field and get our seed bed ready for corn on April 15th, try to shoot for corn, and it looks like it is going to be pushing more towards May."

Wednesday's snow prevented farmers from applying crucial things like fertilizer to their fields.

"You're not allowed to put fertilizer on top of snow, so until the snow is gone it just delays you," Burns said.

The wet conditions are doing more than just causing delays for farmers.

Burns said, "This cold weather stunts the growth of the wheat, so every time we get cold weather like this, it brings our bushels down and loses money."

Farmers will now have to work longer hours to make up for the lost time.

Matthew Smith with TS Smith and Sons said, "This is certainly going to make that even more difficult by adding on some extra hours when the weather does get more suitable for working in the field."

Moving forward, farmers are hoping for drier conditions.

"Some dry weather. We can use a few weeks of no rain, that would be great," Burns said.

Unfortunately, farmers tell us they are still going to lose money as a result of Wednesday's storm.

They say that is largely because many of their crops will be stunted.