Video: Sweet Potato Farmers Get Break this Labor Day

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CALHOUN COUNTY, Miss. (WCBI) — Labor Day is usually a busy day for sweet potato farmers, but not this year. They’re a bit behind schedule because of the weather.

“We’re trying to let the potatoes grow after we got the rain, but this year, this growing season, it’s taking longer because of the earlier cool weather we had,” said farmer Craig Williams.

Williams tells WCBI so far he’s only harvested about five acres of sweet potatoes. He usually harvests 10 to 15 acres.

Williams says he’s grateful for the rain from this past weekend, even though they’re about two weeks behind schedule.

“Very beneficial,” he said. “It helps on the digging process, and helps when they grow too. We were so dry, they just weren’t growing.”

Even though they’re behind this year, Williams isn’t sure how the timing will impact the crops yet.

“We’ll have to wait to see when it freezes. The first freeze, that’s pretty much the cut off. You’ve gotta get them dug by then. That’s typically around October 31. Sometimes we’ve dug into November, and had good luck. Sometimes we don’t. Just going with what the weather does.”

Williams will return to digging his potatoes next Monday. For now, he’ll let them grow and enjoy his Labor Day – free of labor – in the air conditioning.

Williams says since he won’t be focusing on his sweet potatoes this week, he’ll tend to his cattle, soy beans, and hay.

Categories: Local News

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