By Shelby Shank
Field Editor
As a winter storm pushed across Texas this weekend, farmers and ranchers geared up for extreme cold and snow conditions.
In the Texas Panhandle, Aaron Franks, a farmer and rancher from Deaf Smith County, began preparing well in advance before the first snowflakes fell.
“We made sure everything was drained, which we had already done because it’s been below freezing up here already,” Franks said. “But for the winter storm, we were looking at single digit temperatures with a threat of snow or potentially blizzard-like conditions.”
Franks stockpiled hay where he has cattle grazing to ensure they had plenty of dry feed.
“We also put heat lamps in well houses and bought quite a few Freeze Misers to put in stock tanks to keep ice from forming in the lines,” he said.
Early forecasts predicted anywhere from five to 14 inches of snow for the region beginning Friday evening and lasting into Saturday, raising concerns that the storm could be similar to the winter storm in 2021. However, conditions fell short of those predictions in Franks area.
“The temperatures were very cold, and we got light snow going into the night,” Franks said. “Over the entirety of the two or three days, we got somewhere between two inches of snow.”
By the weekend, the storm’s intensity had eased, and calmer conditions followed.
“There’s still a couple inches of really dry snow on the ground, but as I was checking cattle, it was super pleasant,” he said on Monday. “The wind’s not blowing, and my pickup shows about 23 degrees. When the wind’s not blowing, it’s actually fairly enjoyable out here.”
Franks will continue to check cattle in the morning and evening, ensuring water sources remain ice-free, hay is readily available and animals show no signs of illness.
“The severity of the storm didn’t reach the potential that it had, so we were over-prepared,” Franks said. “But it’s better to be over-prepared than not prepared at all.”
With minimal snowfall and less than a tenth of an inch of moisture, Franks’ fields remain dry.
“Most of our dryland wheat is either already dead or close to it,” he said. “The small amount of moisture we did get might slow that process a little, but overall, we’re still extremely dry on the crop side of things.”
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