Lancaster and other central Pennsylvania counties are facing a potential drought with rain totals for the month far below average according to the National Weather Service out of state college.
In a tweet Monday, the weather service said that despite some precipitation last week, the county has received just .3 inches of precipitation in May, which is more than 2 inches below average for the month. York, Lebanon, Chester and Dauphin counties are also well below average.
A drought is an unusually dry period of weather that causes problems like crop damage or water shortages.
Currently, the National Integrated Drought Information System, the national resource for tracking droughts, has determined the county is abnormally dry, one step below a moderate drought.
There does not seem to be much relief on the horizon for the dry spell, with weather forecasts predicting highs of up to 80 degrees and chances of evening precipitation capping out at 30 percent through this week.
According to data from the Millersville University Weather Information Center, Lancaster is well below the average rainfall for the month and the year. The recorded rainfall is down 2.3 inches from the average for the month, and down 4.48 inches for the average for year, with the highest precipitation on May 13 at 0.14 inches.
Despite dry conditions, some farmers are glad for the dry cooler weather as berry harvesting season begins. Jim Erb, manager and owner of Brook Lawn Farm Market on Lititz Pike in Manheim Township said the dry weather with below 90 degree temperatures brings out the best in a lot of berries.
“Right now we have a nice growing condition,” Erb said. “Because we're erring on the side of dryness versus wetness, we actually have a sweeter fruit there as result … It's off to a good start.”
Erb said some rain would be beneficial, but the temperatures have kept cool enough that the plants are not stressed out. He said overly wet seasons can cause splits, so it can be a delicate balance.
But the weather has posed problems planting, as the farmers need to dig deeper to get to the saturated soil while they are planting crops like sweet corn in this season.
