"We need some rain."
Most of Farmer David Williams' corn has made it 'knee-high by the fourth of July,' but some still hasn't yet.
"It takes about 5,000 gallons of water to make a bushel of corn, and I'm afraid we're a little bit short this year," continued Williams.
For six generations, the farm has depended on Mother Nature to keep the plants hydrated. But even if the Williams family installed an irrigation system, the cost to water 3,000 acres of corn would be too much.
"Because of the lack of water, then the yield projections will be going down ... it can be frustrating."
Farmer Williams' concerns are similar to all farmers in Elsie; even those working with livestock.
"Cows can withstand cold a lot better than they can hot weather," said Dairy Farmer Velmar Green.
His 3,000 dairy cows at Green Meadow Farms have to be monitored every minute in this heat: "We occasionally have a cow die because of heat exhaustion."
It takes thousands of gallons of water a day to keep them cool, hydrated and producing milk. But no matter what the workers do, they high and dry temperatures cause the cows to lose their appetites: "Bottom line, if they don't eat, they don't milk."
Causing their production to dip from their 35,000 gallon a day average.
"There will be less production all through the mid-west probably with this kind of weather," but even if rain comes soon, damage has already been done this year.
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