WILKES-BARRE, Pa. — The family-owned farm Larry O'Malia's Farm & Greenhouses near Wilkes-Barre is no stranger to weather-related events. The impacts of Tropical Storm Debby are still being felt.
"You know it's been a family business for four generations. The greenhouses came along a little later, but we're still carrying on the farming tradition," said Gary O'Malia, owner.
The farm has endured every storm through generations. In just the last few years, farmers here have dealt with everything from drought conditions to flooding.
When remnants of Tropical Storm Debby passed through Luzerne County last week, the Susquehanna River rose, flooding part of a field.
"Up until two weeks ago, the farm was looking really good, and don't get me wrong, there's still a lot of really good product down there, but we took a little bit of a hit over the weekend," added O'Malia.
The farm lost this entire field of beans that would've been ready to pick this coming week.
"The field of pickles we were picking, we lost about three-quarters of it, and some other minor crops we lost," said O'Malia.
Workers had to start from square one, planting new bean and pickle fields. Despite the setback, Gary O'Malia remains optimistic and says he's committed to providing the community with fresh produce.
"It could've been a lot worse, you know. The sweet corn was spared, and the tomatoes were spared. Other things like beats and carrots are fine, potatoes," he adds.
He says they were lucky enough to pick some sweet corn just before Debby rolled in, otherwise, that crop would have been lost too.
"So yeah, we didn't get totally wiped out, but every little bit kind of hurts. I'm hoping the weather stays nice and the river stays off and we can have a successful fall."
While workers at O'Malia's wait for the freshly planted crops to blossom, sweet corn, peppers, and other produce will still be for sale at the farm in Plains township.