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PARKERSBURG - The wet weather being experienced in the Mid-Ohio Valley over the last few weeks is causing concerns for area farmers, local experts said.

Eric Barrett, extension educator with the OSU Extension Service for Washington County in Marietta, said the weather has been a mixed bag for local farmers. They are glad not to be having the dry period like last June, but there are still problems.

One of the main problems being experienced now involves hay production, Barrett said. Too much rain is also causing problems for wheat crops. The wheat is supposed to be ready for harvesting by July 4, but the ongoing wet weather is allowing more time for bacteria and fungus to grow.

"We've had minimal time where the leaves have been dry," Barrett said.

For vegetables, the stage of growth due to how and when they were planted will determine if they are affected or not, he said.

Barrett said this summer's first hay cutting will not be good. That hay is usually cut by now but wet fields have slowed the hay-making process. Due to extra rain, the grass to be cut for hay has matured too early and will not be as nutritious. Farmers will have to cut as soon as they can and hope the second cutting later this summer will be better, he said.

Looking at the immediate future, Barrett said the 10-day forecast starts good but more rain could be coming.

"It doesn't look the best for any type of growing," he said.

To deal with the situation, Barrett said farmers will need to manage their time as best they can to work between showers and get the work done.

"There's a saying I heard from an old farmer, 'A dry year will scare you, but a wet year will starve you,"' he said.

Buddy Davidson, communications officer with the West Virginia Department of Agriculture, said the wet weather has been causing problems throughout the state of West Virginia.

The rain has been good for pastures, providing cattle with a lot of good feed now, but it is causing difficulty for hay making. The state's farmers need some dry days to get hay cut, dried and taken up, he said.

Ed Smolder, agricultural extension agent for Jackson County, said the weather has been terrible for farmers. Most area farmers are beef farmers and hay is very important for that, he said. The recent weather has been a double-edged sword for them, good in the short term but bad in the long term.

There is plenty of grass in pastures now for cattle, horses and other livestock, but the issues being seen with hay could cause problems as winter approaches.

The first cutting of hay should have been done around Memorial Day and the best time for the second cutting of the season is usually around the first of August, Smolder said. That may be delayed due to the current weather and will depend on what the rest of the summer is like, he said.

"For anything that eats grass, it's been booming," Smolder said.

In some areas, some vegetable gardens have had to be replanted after the first plantings rotted in the ground due to the excessive moisture. If things turn around, it can still be a good year for farmers depending on what the rest of June and July brings in terms of weather, he said.

Belleville farmer Ralph Blair, president of the Wood County Farm Bureau, said many local farmers are not getting any hay cut because of the wet ground. The grass is maturing, but the ground is too wet to get it out, he said.

The wet weather has also caused problems for local farmers planting corn and soybeans, like Blair himself. A few farmers in areas where rainfall may be less are seeing good crops, but Blair said he was six weeks late putting in his own corn and soybean crops. He is hoping for a good summer and fall for his crops.