Michigan farmers already facing drought-like conditions now dealing with smoke
ROCHESTER HILLS, Mich. (CBS DETROIT) - "You can see the impact of the lack of moisture already," says Ken Schramm, pointing at some crops on his farm.
Like many across Michigan, Schramm's Orchards in Rochester Hills is ready for the next rainfall.
"Cherries don't have deep roots, so if we can't get some rain in the next few days. we're going to be worried about the outcome of our harvest," says Schramm, the owner of Schramm's Orchards.
He says this remarkable year of weather has proven Mother Nature has no boundaries.
"Here we are in the first week of June, we've already had a whole lot of rain, and then we had frosts, then we had no rain, and now we've got smoke to worry about," says Schramm.
You've likely seen it by now. The smoke from Canadian wildfires pouring into cities like New York has made it over to Michigan too. It's another hurdle for Schramm.
"Everybody in fruit growing in Michigan is worried about smoke right now. Are we going to have to figure out a way to deal with smoke or are we going to potentially lose an entire year class here?" Schramm says.
He says depending on how long this lingers, he may have to reach out to farmers he knows in states like California, who faced similar issues during wildfires that the region faced during summers in years past.
