Despite wet weather, Eastern Shore still under an official drought advisory

According to a news release by the Virginia Farm Bureau, as of mid may, drought advisories have been lifted over all of Virginia with the exception of the Eastern Shore.

An advisory remains in effect for the Eastern Shore, with a majority of Northampton and Accomack counties reporting moderate drought conditions as of May 16.

But Matt Hickman, Accomack County Farm Bureau President, said after experiencing delays in corn planting due to “extremely dry” conditions in April, the area is not currently experiencing them.

“Due to our sandy soils, we can turn dry pretty quickly,” Hickman said. “But at the moment, as to my knowledge, every area on the shore has gotten adequate rainfall within the last month.”

Hickman added that the northern end of Accomack County has even experienced delays in planting from excessive rainfall.

“We just seem to be in a wet area at the moment,” he added. “The rest of the shore has made very good planting progress and has adequate rain, so things are looking pretty good over here.”

According to the USDA, 84% of the state’s corn, 66% of cotton and 45% of soybeans had been planted as of May 14. While corn is slightly behind schedule, cotton and soybeans are ahead of last year’s crop progress.