WIGGINS, Colo. — Drought conditions are worsening in eastern Colorado, leaving farmers in a dire situation as some crops dry out and turn yellow unseasonably early.
Colorado State Climatologist Russ Schumacher told Denver7 the situation is concerning despite some moisture in the forecast for the next couple of days.
"The drought conditions continue to worsen in eastern Colorado," Schumacher said.
▶️ WATCH: Eastern Colorado farmers face dire crop conditions as drought worsens
Kreg Vollmer, a corn, alfalfa, wheat, and sugar beet farmer in Fort Morgan and board member for the Colorado Farm Bureau, said the lack of moisture is deeply concerning. From afar, his fields of winter wheat may look fine, but a closer look reveals major problems
"If you look closely on the underside of almost every single one of these wheat plants, it is dried out completely," Vollmer said. "As you look across it, it's already starting to yellow, which is something that's pretty uncommon for this time of year."
The latest drought map, released Thursday, shows conditions look slightly better in some parts of the state compared to last week. However, farmers are constantly monitoring the maps.
"We're constantly looking at these drought maps," Vollmer told Denver7's Veronica Acosta.
While there is some moisture in the forecast, Vollmer said it is not enough for him, other farmers, or their crops.
"At this point, most guys have realized that no matter how much rain we actually get, it's not really going to move the needle," Vollmer said. "We basically need so much rain that it would cause a flood incident."
The lack of water directly impacts the financial livelihood of the farmers.
"If we don't have the water for the crops, we don't have the money to pay for everything for the farm," Vollmer said.
The situation relies entirely on significant rainfall.
"To get out of the drought completely, it would be a lot, but anything helps at this point, it's much better to have regular precipitation than not," Schumacher said. "For eastern Colorado, we need rain at this point."
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