Wednesday’s severe weather left local farmers grappling with widespread crop damage as strong winds and drenching rainfall flattened fields across Waterloo Region. At Herrle’s Country Farm Market in Wilmot, the storm hit sweet corn crops particularly hard. Due to their height, often reaching five to seven feet, the stalks were especially vulnerable to the winds, leaving sections of the field knocked over or submerged. “It’s almost like someone took a big roller and rolled some of it flat, and some of the rest is partially flat and just twisted,” said James Herrle, co-owner of Herrle’s Country Farm Market. Out of approximately 30 acres of sweet corn at the farm, about 25 acres suffered significant damage during Wednesday’s storm. “The next morning, it was kind of heartbreaking coming to the field,” Herrle said. “The corn we were picking was completely flat, like ankle height. That heartbreak quickly turned to a backbreak because it was just a really difficult harvest.” The bent and tangled stalks have made harvesting a physically demanding process. “Now it’s sort of all jumbled, and it’s like a giant game of Jenga trying to pick corn,” Herrle added. Hopeful signs Roughly half an acre of sweet corn remains underwater. Herrle’s published a post on social media the day after the storm. It showed some of the corn crops submerged. Despite the conditions, farm staff managed to salvage a portion of the ripe crop. For the remaining corn crop, which requires about six more weeks to mature before harvest, there are signs of recovery. “We’ve noticed even in the last 36 hours the corn is trying to stand back up,” Herrle noted. “Some of it will kind of succeed and it’ll be goosenecked, and it will possibly produce a cob.” Herrle called the storm one of the worst to hit the farm in decades, but expects there will still be enough sweet corn available for customers through the remainder of the season. “As farmers, we are eternal optimists, and we just put one foot in front of the other and manage through it that way,” he said. The storm’s impact extended beyond damaged fields. A farmer in nearby Ayr reported being without power for more than 24 hours following the storm. Without electricity to operate the well pumps needed to water livestock, the producer said hydro companies should prioritize farms with animals during emergency power restoration efforts.
