Disaster Strikes Twice

Weather can be friend or foe to farmers, and two hurricanes since 2023 have been disastrous for many growers in the southern US.Two years after Hurricane Idalia wreaked havoc, Hurricane Helene packed an even more powerful punch.Pecan grower Buck Paulk of Shiloh Farms lost 19,000 trees during Idalia, and 23,000 more with Helene.  Georgia is the nation’s largest pecan-growing state, and their growers suffered nearly $700 million in crop losses from the latest hurricane.“I have orchards that I planted when I was a young man, they’re gone,” Paulk said. He said it may take a generation for his region to fully recover. A week after the disaster, President Biden toured Paulk’s farm to see the damage firsthand.Photo Credit: Georgia Pecan Growers Association