WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) — Western Kansas has received a large amount of snow over the past couple of days after going through a drought period, and farmers are thankful.
In Dodge City, farmers went around 90 days with little to no precipitation, and they’re saying this large amount of snow is a good sign. Some cities have even received over two feet of snow.
According to farmers, this is just what they needed to help their crops grow.
“We are thankful to be standing in snow right now,” Greg Ruehle, a farmer and rancher in Ford County, said.
Ruehle says watching his cattle in the snow is a welcomed sight.
“This time of year, a lot of wheat that was planted for grazing by livestock did not have livestock turned out on it,” said Ruehle. “It just did not have the moisture to grow, and now with moisture like this, it gives us a chance to be grazed in the spring.”
Ruehle is not the only one in the ag community who is grateful for the snow.
“The wheat crop has been in the ground since early fall, and we really haven’t had any measurable moisture to help it grow and do well and thrive, and so this is a major answer to prays for the wheat crop,” said K-State Agriculture and Natural Resources Agent Andrea Burns.
What makes this chance of snow, so good is that it comes after a recent period of warm weather. It allows it to stick where it fell.
“When this snow melts, the moisture is going to go straight down. It’s not going to run off to another area, to a low area, or a pond. It is going to have an impact right where the snowflake fell. And that is the great opportunity and benefit of this snowfall,” Ruehle said.
