South Carolina hay growers were already dealing with dry weather before the Easter weekend cold snap hit the state. "It got down to 24 and 25 degrees in some areas of the state," reports John Andrae, Clemson University forage crops specialist. "The oats had headed out and the wheat was in boot stage or later, so we are really just getting a handle on the damage. It looks like it's fairly extensive in some areas. Most of those crops are in the southern part of South Carolina, but really the whole area got hit. We could actually see more small grains like oats go into hay this year, depending on how extensive the damage is."

Contact Andrae at 864-656-3504.