LANCASTER COUNTY, Pa. — At Cedar Meadow Farm in Lancaster County, owner Steve Groff starts his day like many of us.
"I start a cup of coffee, and then, I check the weather," laughed Groff.
His eyes are on the sky, and Groff is checking the radar all hours of the day because his work depends on Mother Nature.
"We're not in what I would consider "extreme territory" yet," explained Groff. "We could be in two weeks if we don't get any rain."
With unrelenting heat over the past two weeks and rain showers few and far between, the third generation tomato grower is spending time in his fields every day.
"I am irrigating two to four hours a day depending again how hot it is and and so forth," said Groff. "It costs us fuel. It costs us use of the equipment."
While Groff says your tomato plants may not be doing so hot in the heat, his are growing just fine because of the irrigation system and the no till farming techniques utilized at Cedar Meadow.
"When you have a hot weather like this, the plant will just shed its blossoms, it will abort blossoms because the plant is trying to survive," explained Groff.
Groff's tomatoes are growing just fine, no thanks to the irrigation system and no till farming style. Right now, his concerns lie elsewhere.
"I have 75 acres of high value pumpkin and squash that I have," explained Groff. "We're hoping and praying for rain."
Groff is already facing a financial loss from his corn which hasn't grown as tall this year.
"I think we probably already might have lost 5% of our yield potential, maybe 10% in some fields," said Groff. "It doesn't sound like a lot, but sometimes, that's where the profit is. Naturally, if we would get an inch and a quarter a week -- that's about what we need to keep our crops growing in this kind of heat."