Drought threatens farmers while great weather brings crowds to markets

WEST ST. PAUL, Minn. -- What great weather is depends on whom you're asking.

"We like rain," Teng Yang, a farmer selling vegetables at a pop up market on Summit Avenue quipped to WCCO. "Without rain, it's hard."

WCCO's Next Weather analysis labels this summer the 4th driest on record, with a rainfall deficit over more than five inches over two months. Temperatures, meanwhile, show a warm up of up for three degrees.

"Peppers are hard," farmer Tou Lyfoung lamented. "They're not as big as they used to be with lots of water. They're small and they're growing slow."

Both Yang and Lyfoung told WCCO they're able to irrigate their farms but it's a painstaking process of hoses, buckets and pales. 

"It's a double shift. We work here, then the field," Lyfoung explained. "We pick up everyday to bring fresh vegetable to the customer."

Fortunately, many root vegetables that grow firmly underground are able to absorb moisture and continue to grow well. 

"Even though the last couple weeks it hasn't been raining, there's moisture in the ground. That's why you see cucumbers," he added.

There are seven farmers markets scheduled for this weekend in St. Paul:

Saturday

Downtown, 290 E 5th Street, 7:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.

Burnsville, 200 W. Burnsville Blvd, 8:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.

Apple Valley, 7100 West 147th St. 8:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.

Lakeville, 20965 Holyoke Ave. 9:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.

Sunday

Downtown, 290 E 5th Street, 8:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.

Woodbury, 8595 Central Park Place, 8:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.

Savage, 4800 West 123rd St, 8:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.

Inver Grove Heights, 8055 Barbara Ave. 8:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.