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Iowa's drought status | How farmers are feeling

With central Iowa getting very little precipitation over the past month, here's what that means for crops.

POLK CITY, Iowa — 2022 rang in with a snowfall bang! Two big snowstorms in the first two and a half weeks of the year put us well above the average snowfall for mid-January at the time.

A month later, and Des Moines Airport has received a whopping 0.2" since the 14.3" deluge on Jan. 15. 

Credit: WOI

Last year was an abnormally dry year, as the Des Moines airport saw nearly eight less inches of precipitation than the yearly average.

Kenny Lund, a Polk City farmer, saw no change with his corn and soybean yield last year.

"We had an excellent crop last year," Lund told Local 5.

Even though it's not a great start thus far, he isn't worried about this year either.

"As long as we get timely rains through summer, it's not a huge problem," Lund said.

Credit: WOI
Credit: WOI

Even all that snow back in January doesn't help to alleviate any drought concerns.

"Snow doesn't add a lot to groundwater," Lund said. "When it starts thawing and melts, the ground is still frozen, so most of it runs off."

But there's one thing he definitely doesn't want.

"We don't need this severe stuff. It seems more of an issue than what it used to be," Lund added.

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