While forecasters are predicting a warm-up for the end of the week, some area farmers and growers have had a tough time with the record cold temperatures.

It hasn’t been as bad for local growers as it has been for those in Florida, because Richmond County Agricultural Extension Agent Paige Burns said it’s all about timing.

“A lot of people in the area grow rye and wheat and strawberries, but there’s not much to worry about our peaches because they’re dormant right now,” Burns said.

Burns said those who do greenhouse growing and own poultry farms have had a tougher time with the cold because the cost of heating has gone up significantly.

Wayne Thompson, owner of Bountiful Gardens in Rockingham said the colder temperatures hit much earlier this year and they’ve been using a lot more gas to heat their greenhouses.

“We start planting this early for our spring sales and we usually don’t use a lot of heat, but we’ve had several weeks of really cold weather now,” Thompson said.

Thompson said the temperature inside the greenhouses is usually around 62 degrees, and with temperatures dipping into the teens at night, it’s taken a lot more gas to keep the greenhouses warm. Sunny days help heat the greenhouses during the daylight hours, but again, much of the colder temperatures of the last few weeks have been accompanied by cloudy days, making it necessary to run the heat around the clock.

“It’s very likely it will impact the prices of plants this spring,” Thompson said. “Because if we sell them for what we normally do, the profit will be eaten up by the cost of gas, but I don’t know the percentage yet.”

Burns said she hasn’t heard of any devastation from rye, wheat or strawberry growers in the county.

“It hasn’t been cold enough here to hurt our strawberries because we’re in a different cycle than Florida,” she said. “Ours are dormant right now and most people use ground covers anyway. And as far as I know, I haven’t heard anything as far as our wheat crops. It’s definitely cold, but I haven’t heard of any devastation.”

Burns said beginning in January, most of the crops grown in the area are in a holding pattern.

“We had such devastation in 2007, during the Easter freeze, and we’ve seen those temperatures, but the difference between then and now is so great because in 2007 we had two to three weeks of balmy weather at the end of winter and the crops were coming out of dormancy and putting out leaves and flowers and we lost peaches, grapes and blueberries. The strawberries were OK because there are a lot of ways to protect them, but as far as rye and wheat, we were just heading out and they all got fried. We had a much reduced crop that year because of the loss of seeds,” Burns said. “Timing is everything.”

Keith Hall, Chesterfield County Agricultural Extension Agent said his area actually needs the cold weather right now to make sure the peaches stay dormant and don’t bloom soon.

He said the only concern area growers down there may have are strawberries.

The National Weather Service is forecasting temperatures back in the 50s beginning Wednesday. Friday, the area may see temperatures as high as 60 degrees. Evening temperatures will remain in the 30s though, with a chance of rain Saturday and Sunday.

Staff writer Eren Tataragasi can be reached at (910) 997-3111 ext. 19 or at etataragasi@yourdailyjournal.com.