Drought worries for Ontario Farmers

Weeks without rain combined with recent extreme heat have taken a toll on crops in the Grand River area (Ontario) and some will be in danger, said Sandra Vos, president of the Brant County Federation of Agriculture.

"A lot of us are quite worried,"said Vos, noting that she had heard that some farmers in surrounding sandy soil areas are starting to plow under fields of potatoes and tomatoes destroyed by drought.

It has not been a happy growing season, beginning with a cold wet spring that delayed planting, issues with compacted ground and now no rain and extreme heat, she said.

If crop roots cannot get through compacted ground to find moisture, plants will begin dying in lighter soils and on knolls, she said.