By Shelby Shank
Field Editor

Drought conditions and relentless heat have left Guadalupe County farmer Ray Joy Pfannstiel facing one of the toughest harvests in recent years.

Pfannstiel, who grows corn, sorghum, cotton and raises cattle, said the year started with promise but quickly turned dry.

“During the springtime, we had much needed rains, but it was only a tenth or two tenths of an inch at a time,” he said. “We’d get just enough to get the crop up, but no sub moisture to help it keep going unless we got another inch, and we didn’t.”

By May, several days of triple-digit heat struck at the worst time.

“Some of the corn planted earlier was in tassel and got caught in that heat and just burned up,” Pfannstiel said. “Some of my corn only got two to three feet tall and literally died. The grass took over after a few rain showers.”

Pfannstiel has some later-planted corn to harvest but expects yields will be low.

“This harvest will go a lot faster just because we don’t have to haul off much grain,” he said. “In the past, we’ve had issues in the area for a lack of storage space because grain elevators had reached capacity. I don’t think we’ll have that problem this year because there’s not enough grain around to fill up the elevators.”

While his corn outlook isn’t great, Pfannstiel saw better results from his sorghum crop.

“Some fields looked pretty good because it held on through the dry stretch, and then when we did get some rain, it was able to kick up and get going,” he said.

Still, the crop faced setbacks. Pfannstiel lost two fields to midge infestations, and other farmers in his area had the same issue.

Of all his crops, cotton is showing the greatest potential this year.

“I have about 200 acres of cotton, and it potentially could make a relatively good crop,” Pfannstiel said. “But time will tell.”

Hay production has also improved following late-summer rains. Pfannstiel expects a decent cutting this year after back-to-back dry years.

“In our area, we normally get 30 to 32 inches of rain annually, but it’s been years since we’ve seen that,” Pfannstiel said. “But it has to hit at the right time. We live with whatever Mother Nature gives us and depend on her when she gives us the rainfall, but it has to be during the right time.”

Pfannstiel plans to reduce his sorghum acreage next year due to low prices and may plant more cotton. But the uncertainty of commodity markets and tariffs makes planning difficult.

“It’s a rough time right now for farmers and ranchers in this area,” he said. “We’ve just got to have faith and hope commodity prices pick up. Hopefully, we can get through to the other side.”