Farmers sound the alarm after months of weird weather throws crops off track: 'We'll just keep our fingers crossed'
Eagle River in northern Wisconsin is known as the "Snowmobile Capital of the World" because of its hundreds of miles of trails. The town, like much of Wisconsin this past winter, came up short on snowfall compared to average. Eagle River ended up with nearly 10 inches of snow less than average during the winter of 2024-2025. That represents a reduction of around 20% of the average for a winter there.
The Badger State had its 34th-warmest and 18th-driest winter on record. That led to a drop in snowfall compared to the average for most of the state. Southern Wisconsin was hit the hardest, with most of that portion of the state seeing between 25% to 75% of average seasonal snowfall. The latest U.S. Drought Monitor Report revealed that just over 50% of the state was in a moderate drought.
Winter snowfall is particularly important for strawberry farmers. They count on snow to cover their crops, protecting the burgeoning sweet fruit from extreme weather.
"It's been a really unusual year. I can't point to a year that I can remember where it was just like this," Kerry Bruntz, farmer and owner of SunnyHill Farm in Green Bay, told Spectrum News 1. "The snow acts as insulation for a crop like strawberries, that needs to lay dormant over the winter and then come back to life. Without that insulation, the crop could potentially be harmed by severe cold weather. We're hoping. But again, we'll have to wait and see if there was anything, any harm. We'll just keep our fingers crossed."
The Midwest Regional Climate Center uses its Accumulated Winter Season Severity Index to track the severity of winters across the country. All nine of the locations it monitors in Wisconsin experienced a "mild" winter, the least extreme of the five categories the index considers.
A Climate Central analysis of snowfall trends for over 2,000 locations in the United States found that nearly two-thirds (64%) now get less snow than in the early 1970s.
Snow plays a crucial role in keeping our planet cooler. The lack of the white stuff also has implications for water supplies in our country because it accounts for over 50% of the runoff that refills reservoirs and replenishes groundwater in the western U.S.
In addition to having impacts on farmers, Wisconsin's economy takes a hit when snow comes up short. The outdoor recreation industry, including winter sports, boosts the state's economy by $11.2 billion annually.
Wisconsin isn't the only place in the Upper Midwest that faced a snowfall shortage. As of the first week of March, Fargo, North Dakota, had received just under 20 inches of snow so far this snow season, about half of the normal number through that time of the year.
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A shift in snowpack levels in the Sierra Nevada this winter is disconcerting because the region's snowpack supplies nearly 30% of the state's water needs.
To cool our planet, we must drastically reduce the amount of heat-trapping gases released into the atmosphere by the burning of dirty fuels. To this end, we can help by becoming informed about critical climate issues, talking to family and friends about what is happening, and advocating for change and a shift to renewable energy sources.
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