Drought Hits Garvin County Farmers Hard

Gan Matthews, News 9

GARVIN COUNTY, Oklahoma -- All over Oklahoma, farmers are counting up their losses from the drought, and praying for rain. In Garvin County several farmers are praying their lost crops can feed their cattle.

Garvin County Farmer Trey Lam says this is the worst drought in his lifetime.

"This is the first one that's lasted all the way through the winter, the spring, and the summer," Lam said.

Since he has no corn crop to sell, and hay is costly, Lam is bailing up his corn stalks as a hay substitute for his cattle.

Cattle must drink as well as eat. Some ponds have water, some don't.

Some cattle owners are selling off their herds, some can't.

"Those are not very easy to find and buy back, and they're certainly not very cheap to find and buy back.," said Bob Leadford, OSU Extension Agent. "So a lot of those guys are wanting to hold those herds, keep those herds together."

Trey Lam's family has been farming here since statehood. He'll survive this year.

"We can borrow money, put in another crop, but another failure after that would probably be devastating," Lam said.