Under the weather: Lengthy drought has NC farmers 鈥榩raying for the rain鈥�
by Jane Winik Sartwell, Carolina Public Press
March 21, 2025
Last year was an in the history of North Carolina farming, thanks to drought and flood.
Farmers are desperate to catch a break in 2025. But just as planting season begins, large swaths of the state are still plagued by dry conditions. At the same time, an active wildfire season has complicated matters.
鈥淲e really need a good start,鈥� Jacob Morgan, the extension director for Jones County, told . 鈥淧lanting is going to start any minute.鈥�
Morgan, and the farmers he assists, may not be so lucky. Severe or moderate drought has persisted in coastal Jones County since early November 2024.
Neighboring Onslow County is experiencing a severe drought.
And 55 more counties are in moderate drought 鈥� an arid patch that stretches all the way from the Atlantic Ocean to the Appalachian Mountains in the west.
Only one area in the state has escaped abnormally dry conditions: Franklin County in the Piedmont region.
鈥淲e鈥檝e been lucky because it has been wintertime and demand is low,鈥� explained Klaus Albertin, who chairs the North Carolina Drought Management Advisory Council. 鈥淐rops are dormant. Lawns and gardens aren鈥檛 being maintained. But we鈥檙e about to go into spring and demands are really going to start picking up. There is increasing concern.鈥�
Agriculture anxieties
Corn is typically the first crop farmers plant in the spring and last year it was decimated by drought. Yield losses climbed to hundreds of millions of dollars across the state.
This year, corn farmers are desperate for good news. But it hasn鈥檛 come yet.
The sandy soil of eastern North Carolina does not retain moisture well, and a dry spell this early on could lead to trouble. Any precipitation the region does receive could get soaked up pretty quickly.
鈥淵ou need it to be dry to get out into the fields to plant, but you need enough soil moisture to get the crop up,鈥� Morgan said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a real dance 鈥� especially for corn. There is such a short window of pollination, and if conditions aren鈥檛 right during that window, it could spell disaster.鈥�
And that鈥檚 what happened last year.
High and dry: The sun hangs over Wilmington as area farmers hope for a rainy day. Jane Winik Sartwell / Carolina Public Press 鈥淲e are praying for the rain,鈥� said Shawn Banks, Carteret County鈥檚 extension director.
Fortunately, recent rains have slightly eased drought conditions across the state. Still, even though things are starting to bloom, it may not be a sign that North Carolina is out of trouble.
鈥淒rought is not just skin deep,鈥� said Corey Davis, a drought expert at the State Climate Office. 鈥淓ven if there are puddles in your yard or the grass is turning green, that doesn鈥檛 mean we're out of this drought. We still have those entrenched impacts in deeper soils and groundwater stores.鈥�
Drought has one benefit
One good thing about this dry run: It鈥檚 aiding Tropical Storm Helene recovery efforts in Western North Carolina.
鈥淭his warm, dry weather will definitely help move along the stream bank repair work and bridge and road infrastructure construction out west,鈥� Mitch Woodward, a state extension agent specializing in watershed protection, told CPP.
鈥淭hey don鈥檛 need anymore rain or mud out there for awhile.鈥�
As winter recedes, it鈥檚 given way to warmer weather and a North Carolina landscape that has proven to be intensely combustible. A lightning strike can be enough to ignite a wildfire. But as CPP recently , the majority of wildfires have been caused by careless people.
Spring is a dangerous time for wildfires. Dead leaves and branches on the forest floor serve as kindling. The sun gets hotter and hotter each day, with no foliage to provide shade.
Until the forest canopy fills in completely, there will be a risk of wildfire, Colby Lambert, an eastern North Carolina extension agent specializing in forestry, told CPP.
鈥淓verything is just very flammable at the moment,鈥� Albertin said. 鈥淟ow humidity combined with the lack of rainfall and high winds 鈥� that鈥檚 going to increase the risk of wildfire.鈥�
This, too, has an economic impact. Morgan is worried about valuable timber lands in Jones County burning up.
And the problem isn鈥檛 going away.
On Thursday, in fact, the N.C. Forest Service was dealing with two wildfires in Polk County on the South Carolina line.
This first appeared on and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.
