WAYNE COUNTY -- All the dry weather lately has slowed the growing season for some farmers in our area.
Garden centers and cornfields in Wayne County badly needed the rain we got Tuesday and Wednesday.
At the Weist Farm just outside Honesdale, this summer has been a dry one.
The sweet corn is a summertime treat that's only now ready for the eating.
Whether it's acres and acres of sweet corn on the farm or flowers and plants at the Agway Garden Center in Honesdale, one thing they all need is a good, soaking rain.
Finally, the rains came this week which is a big relief for workers who've had to hand-water all of the outdoor plants to keep them from drying up and dying.
"The past couple weeks have been terrible," said Agway employee Corrie Jones.
Jones said business is slow when the raindrops fall but that's okay, she said we need it.
"It's been rough a little bit here and there, couple weeks of dry, then rain a few days," she added.
Usually the folks at the Weist Farm near Honesdale already have their road side stand open with fresh sweet corn. Because the weather has been so dry, it's only opened now in the middle of August, but it might mean a much later season for sweet corn.
"It's been a long summer, we're about a month behind from where we normally are because of the weather, late planting season," said farmer Andy Weist. "We got rain that was beneficial. It soaked in."
Now, if the rains don't stay away then farmers like Weist and gardeners at home can reap what they've sown.
"We'll have a lot of sweet corn for parties over Labor Day. Some years Labor Day is about the end. We should be in good shape for that this year."
Depending on how soon the frost hits, the folks on the Weist farm said the sweet corn season could last until the beginning of October.
