While the region has become frustrated with constant rainy forecasts and accustomed to never leaving home without an umbrella, Russo’s Farm is dealing with the weather at a much more personal level.
“We’ve been affected by the weather, there’s no doubt. From the lack of sunlight to lack of potential yields in the future, it has definitely impacted us,” said Joann Gsell, a member of the Russo family who works at the farm.
Russo’s Farm has been a Tabernacle establishment since 1940 and is located at the intersection of Medford Lakes and Carranza roads. The rain this summer has been unlike anything Gsell has seen before.
“The amount of rainfall was absolutely unprecedented for June,” Gsell said.
“We’ve had years or months with too much rainfall but not in June. It’s just unexpected.”
The American Association of State Climatologists confirms Gsell’s opinion. New Jersey’s statewide average precipitation totaled 9.57 inches, a record for any June dating back to 1895. Tabernacle saw 12.43 inches.
According to Gsell, the farm is faced with two big issues due to the unprecedented amount of rainfall.
“Crops that are planted already and trying to grow cannot grow properly because we’ve had not enough sun and too much water. Because of how much rain we’ve had, the ground is saturated. Plants are sitting in water, and when that happens, they will eventually die,” Gsell said.
The saturation of the fields presents another problem for Russo’s — the ability to plant at all.
“We went almost three weeks without being able to plant corn. With a gap like that, we will be affected in the coming months in how much there will be available to harvest,” Gsell said.
Gsell said the concern is that when customers come looking for seasonal produce, there might not be as much available.
“I think what people forget or don’t realize is that, later in the season, when they’re looking to buy corn or other seasonal produce, they’ve forgotten how rainy June was because it doesn’t really affect them. We are impacted for the rest of the season by the rain we’ve gotten this summer,” Gsell said.
The staff at Russo’s has been diligent in their attempts to combat the amount of rainfall.
“Our guys are cultivating, fertilizing and aerating the soil as much possible,” Gsell said. “There are always things you can try to do and we’ll keep trying them.”
Gsell emphasized that the state of affairs at Russo’s was not all doom and gloom. With severe weather in the forecast becoming a daily occurrence, many people are foregoing longer day trips to the beaches and staying local for things to do.
“Our foot traffic through the market has been fine,” Gsell said. “For the most part, we can’t complain. We know it is something we’ll get through.”
