On many farms and ranches, resources are strained as well, leaving owners struggling to make the most of what crop is growing, what water is still flowing and what pasture they have left.
We’re moving our cows to pastures normally not used until much later in the summer.
While we hay and once harvest starts, we’ll have water trucks and other firefighting equipment on site with us.
It also means extra time and manpower that would otherwise be spent working on equipment to have it harvest-ready, as well as extra time contacting landowners and coordinating sign-ups through the Farm Service Agency office.
For those of you unfamiliar with the process, CRP means, by definition, that "in exchange for a yearly rental payment, farmers enrolled in the program agree to remove environmentally sensitive land from agricultural production and plant species that will improve environmental health and quality.
The program is administered through the Department of Agriculture’s Farm Service Agency, and there are special rules for regular maintenance on these acres.
I mentioned that we’ve been taking action where we can to ease drought effects.
Part of the process in having CRP acres eligible for emergency grazing and haying includes input from farmers and ranchers expressing a need for the extra resources, and we’ve taken part in that process.
It also has helped us feel like we’re doing something positive in a time of uncertainty when so many factors are out of our control.
Until that day comes, though, let’s all continue to take positive action.