What is left of Hurricane Debby is bringing a lot of rain to the south and east coast.
Southeast Georgia and coastal Carolina saw rain totals of anywhere from 10-20 inches, leading to historic flooding and a devastating end to the growing season for some farmers. While the rain has caused concern, some say the moisture was needed because the summer heat caused crop conditions to decline drastically.
Recent stretches of wet weather have led to major improvements in crops like cotton and corn.
North Carolina has benefited the most among southern states. The latest Drought Monitor shows that the state was covered with D1 and D2 ratings just weeks ago.
Only a small section in the north where corn and soybeans are growing is designated as moderate drought.
USDA Meteorologist Brad Rippey says that Debby took what could be considered the best ag route possible so far this week.
“Initially from an agricultural standpoint, Debby moved through about the best possible area you could take a hurricane through the southeastern United States. So for example, we saw very limited impact in Florida’s citrus area, Florida sugarcane, and we also bypassed a lot of Georgia’s major southwestern production areas for crops like peanuts and cotton,” Rippey explains.
He says that the storm system is still expected to make its way out to sea and intensify in the coming days, threatening farms farther up the coast.
