Specialty farmers adapt harvests, protect crops in face of extreme heat

The recent Heat Dome affected some specialty farmers who produce crops like fruits and vegetables. Intense heat is the result of a human-driven Climate Change pattern of weather extremes that may lead to loss of crops for farmers and forces them to adapt their practices. (AP Video: Joshua A. Bickel) Updated [hour]:[minute] [AMPM] [timezone], [monthFull] [day], [year] Brooksville, Ky. (AP) — Even as the sun started to set, the day’s heat was still hanging in the air as Annie Woods walked back out to harvest squash and zucchini on her 50-acre farm.Prolonged and intense heat is part of a Climate Change-driven pattern of weather extremes that has also led to intense flooding and prolonged drought. For farmers, this means shorter planting windows and potential loss of crops because of periods of early-season heat followed by a freeze.“I think it’s pretty safe to assume these kind of heat waves aren’t going away or they’re not freak occurrences,” Woods said.The recent Heat Dome, a high-pressure weather system that traps heat and humidity over a region, affected some specialty farmers who produce crops of fruits and vegetables. Human-driven Climate Change also has brought more intense heat waves and other extreme weather. These specialty farmers have found ways to adapt, in part by adjusting their harvest schedules to avoid the hottest parts of the day. But they don’t always have access to the same safety net as farmers of traditional commodity crops such as corn and soybeans when extreme weather hits, experts say. Annie Woods takes a drink of water while harvesting Wednesday, July 1, 2026, at her farm in Brooksville, Ky. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel) Annie Woods takes a drink of water while harvesting Wednesday, July 1, 2026, at her farm in Brooksville, Ky. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share The sun sets Wednesday, July 1, 2026, over a farm in Brooksville, Ky. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel) The sun sets Wednesday, July 1, 2026, over a farm in Brooksville, Ky. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share The heat and humidity that comes with a Heat Dome can be dangerous for farmworkers and is a “serious threat to human health,” said Melissa Widhalm, the associate director at the Midwest Regional Climate Center in West Lafayette, Indiana. Woods works in the coolest parts of the day in the morning and evening, taking frequent water breaks. She plants and harvests by hand, unlike larger farms that often rely on machinery. If it gets too hot and she has to harvest, she pitches a tent she uses for farmer’s markets in the fields to create some shade.Heat can affect crop quality, harvest time Annie Woods harvests squash Wednesday, July 1, 2026, at her farm in Brooksville, Ky. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel) Annie Woods harvests squash Wednesday, July 1, 2026, at her farm in Brooksville, Ky. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Extreme heat coupled with periods of rain and high humidity, can also bring diseases and other pests that can destroy crops. Right now the priority is harvesting those most-vulnerable crops, such as tender salad greens. Woods grows vegetables and culinary herbs for restaurants in the region and for a community supported agriculture program. Harvesting crops when it’s too hot outside can affect their quality, she said. She’s also concerned that for the health of her the seedlings that will grow into fall crops. Right now, Woods keeps her seedlings in an enclosed cabinet inside a barn where it’s cooler. Once they’ve germinated, she moves them into a greenhouse with fans running to keep temperatures manageable. “We have to do a lot checking on the greenhouse and watering frequently to keep those teeny tiny plants alive,” Woods said. Crops grow inside a greenhouse as fans run to keep the temperature down Wednesday, July 1, 2026, at a farm in Brooksville, Ky. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel) Crops grow inside a greenhouse as fans run to keep the temperature down Wednesday, July 1, 2026, at a farm in Brooksville, Ky. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Trays of seedlings sit inside a cabinet to keep cool Wednesday, July 1, 2026, at a farm in Brooksville, Ky. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel) Trays of seedlings sit inside a cabinet to keep cool Wednesday, July 1, 2026, at a farm in Brooksville, Ky. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Heat-damaged celery rests in a tray inside a greenhouse Wednesday, July 1, 2026, at a farm in Brooksville, Ky. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel) Heat-damaged celery rests in a tray inside a greenhouse Wednesday, July 1, 2026, at a farm in Brooksville, Ky. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Celery grows inside a greenhouse Wednesday, July 1, 2026, at a farm in Brooksville, Ky. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel) Celery grows inside a greenhouse Wednesday, July 1, 2026, at a farm in Brooksville, Ky. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share For some growers, the recent heat also has shortened the harvest window for certain specialty crops.For Paul Rasch, who owns and operates multiple fruit orchards in central Iowa, the heat has forced his crew of eight workers to step up harvesting of raspberries. Normally, they’d have about three weeks to harvest this perishable fruit, but “we’re scrambling to pick as many as we can,” he said. They’ve started harvesting as early as 6 a.m. some mornings to finish before noon when it gets too hot and unsafe to work. He’s also installed air conditioning inside buildings and is adding shade outdoors with trees and covered pavilions so customers coming to pick their own fruit can stay cool. And he’s testing a few high tunnels so he can keep conditions more consistent for certain crops. Annie Woods harvests eightball, a type of zucchini, as the sun sets Wednesday, July 1, 2026, at her farm in Brooksville, Ky. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel) Annie Woods harvests eightball, a type of zucchini, as the sun sets Wednesday, July 1, 2026, at her farm in Brooksville, Ky. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Rasch said that it seems like these heat events are becoming more common, more intense and lasting longer. These events, along with floods, drought and late-spring frosts are all worrisome and can adversely affect crops throughout the year.“We don’t ever seem to have a typical year anymore,” he said.Crop diversity protects against losses, insurance can be hard to access A cat pauses between rows of crops waiting for planting Wednesday, July 1, 2026, at a farm in Brooksville, Ky. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel) A cat pauses between rows of crops waiting for planting Wednesday, July 1, 2026, at a farm in Brooksville, Ky. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Smaller farms like Woods’ and Rasch’s often plant and harvest a wide variety of crops throughout the year. Part of that is a business decision, but it’s also to protect against losses that might impact one crop, but not others.“You’re always gonna have something that will thrive while other things might be more challenged,” Woods said.Rasch also said that crop insurance for specialty crop farmers is different than for commodity farmers. They’re more vulnerable to extreme weather, but they aren’t as protected, he said. Woods, who also works with the Organic Association of Kentucky, agrees and said she knows farmers like her who have a difficult time accessing insurance because they farm such a wide range of crops on small acreage. And that’s because federal crop insurance programs are designed to insure single crops with one growing season, like corn, soybean and wheat, said Duncan Orlander, a policy specialist with the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition. Annie Woods lifts a crate of squash and zucchini while harvesting Wednesday, July 1, 2026, at her farm in Brooksville, Ky. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel) Annie Woods lifts a crate of squash and zucchini while harvesting Wednesday, July 1, 2026, at her farm in Brooksville, Ky. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Japanese beetles damage okra plant leaves Wednesday, July 1, 2026, at a farm in Brooksville, Ky. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel) Japanese beetles damage okra plant leaves Wednesday, July 1, 2026, at a farm in Brooksville, Ky. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Annie Woods holds zucchini while harvesting produce Wednesday, July 1, 2026, at her farm in Brooksville, Ky. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel) Annie Woods holds zucchini while harvesting produce Wednesday, July 1, 2026, at her farm in Brooksville, Ky. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Annie Woods inspects herbs while harvesting Wednesday, July 1, 2026, at her farm in Brooksville, Ky. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel) Annie Woods inspects herbs while harvesting Wednesday, July 1, 2026, at her farm in Brooksville, Ky. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share For smaller specialty crop farmers, the paperwork required to cover a larger range of crops on small acreage can be too burdensome and coverage for certain specialty crops may not even be available in certain places. Crop insurers are also disincentivized to sell policies with small premiums and potential payouts, he added. And although there are federal programs that cover a farm’s revenue rather than their specific crops, Orlander said these policies are complicated and widely underutilized.“We’re not keeping up with the losses and the extreme weather that we’re seeing,” he said. “And we have to think a little bit differently about how we are going to mitigate risk and cover losses into the future when these things occur.” A poblano pepper grows inside a greenhouse Wednesday, July 1, 2026, at a farm in Brooksville, Ky. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel) A poblano pepper grows inside a greenhouse Wednesday, July 1, 2026, at a farm in Brooksville, Ky. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share For Woods, the community supported agriculture program she runs gives her flexibility in case one crop fails. Her customers are supporting the farm for the season regardless of what vegetables end up in their boxes. That program and her crop diversity is one way she “hedges our bets” against heat, floods and drought.“It’s something you have to be aware of and plan for and have a plan to be resilient in the face of these kind of events,” Woods said. Annie Woods loads a crate of harvested produce into her farm vehicle Wednesday, July 1, 2026, in Brooksville, Ky. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel) Annie Woods loads a crate of harvested produce into her farm vehicle Wednesday, July 1, 2026, in Brooksville, Ky. (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share ___Follow Joshua A. Bickel on Instagram, Bluesky and X @joshuabickel.___The Associated Press’ climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org. Bickel is a video journalist on the Associated Press Climate and Environment team. He focuses on climate and agriculture, and is based in Cincinnati.