Melon Farmers Cope with Drought
By Adrian Hart
One of the largest producers of watermelons, cantaloupes, and pumpkins in the Rocky Ford area is the Hirakata family. The Hirakatas have certainly contributed to Rocky Ford's reputation for producing some of the world's finest melons. They have been there for more than 90 years, farming for more than 75 years. However, they have not limited themselves to just melons. The Hirakatas also grow corn, wheat, soybeans, and select items such as chilies that they sell in their produce shed.
The
Hirakatas have had to take some drastic measures in order to survive the drought
that is currently stifling the lower Arkansas valley. They typically farm
about 1,200 acres, but last year the drought limited the acreage that they
could farm to about 480 acres. With less land to farm you would expect there
to be less work, but that certainly wasn't the case.
What water there was had to be carefully managed, and this resulted
in many more hours of careful irrigation.
"We were spoiled with the water that we were getting, but last year we ran in circles trying to baby-sit what crops we did plant," Michael Hirakata said in a disappointed voice.
Then in mid-July they ran out of water. With no more water for the rest of the season, many of the crops dried up in the fields.
"We carry insurance for such an occasion, but it's real hard to receive any money from the claims." Michael said.
This year very little of their land will be farmed, so they haven't been working much because they are only planting about 20 percent of their usual crops. Before they began planting they hadn't even started a tractor for about six months.
For 2003 the Hirakatas have taken several measures to try and prevent some of the losses that resulted from the drought last year. They only have enough water to feed 250 of their 1,200 acres this year. The land that isn't being used has been covered with wheat. The wheat is poorly developed and isn't expected to do anything more than hold the topsoil down when the wind picks up.
Not only do the Hirakatas have the drought to face, but the Iraq war and terrorism have also made times tough. The U.S. borders are much more stringent on who can cross now. The Hirakatas depend on immigrant labor. Almost all of their labor is from immigrants, and now many of them can't get across the border. Although they are only planning on planting melons this year, there is still a high demand for labor because of the method they use for growing the melons.
A highly efficient combination of drip irrigation and plastic mulch is the only thing that is allowing the Hirakatas to farm this year
The first step in planting with drip irrigation is running pipes to feed the "drip tape"-flattened hoses with multiple small outlet holes. The drip tape is then placed inside of the rows about ten inches from the surface. These hoses steadily feed the melons water.
The rows are then covered with black "mulch plastic," which serves several purposes. Not only does it collect heat from the sun and warm the melons, so they mature much quicker, but it also protects them from pests and limits disease. Plastic mulch saves money and also helps protect the environment because expensive herbicides aren't needed. The black "mulch plastic" also helps cut back on labor. Since the soil is covered around the plants, weeds don't even get the chance to sprout, so workers aren't needed to walk the fields and hoe them.
After putting the "mulch plastic" down they use a special planter that burns through the plastic before planting the seed. They plant about one week later then the competition, but because the soil is heated the melons are ready for harvest about ten to fourteen days sooner than usual.
This year the amount of water saved is the most important thing that was considered when they decided to use this technique.
"It's pretty efficient-it's probably about 90-percent efficient, compared to the 30-percent efficiency that is achieved when using furrow irrigation." Michael said.
There are many other reasons to use "mulch plastic" and drip irrigation than water conservation. Not only does it cut back pests and disease as well as producing the product sooner, but this farming method also produces a 70-percent higher yield and much more uniform melons.
This technique has its drawbacks though. It is very costly and if there are high winds, there is risk of having damaged crops. The plastic mulch provides a smooth surface for dirt and debris to travel on. If the wind is bad enough, the debris can do damage to the plants.
The Hirakatas have decided to take the risks of planting melons this year because their livelihood depends on it. They have usual customers that buy their melons to sell at their stores as well as people that purchase produce for their stand. These people depend on the Hirakatas high quality product. The Hirakatas have great customer loyalty that they do not want to risk losing.
"We have to put our money back into what has been our staple crop because if we don't we run the risk of losing business from stores and supermarkets," Michael said.
