COLLEGE STATION, Texas — The Aggie Agronomy Society's annual corn maze has been a tradition since 2015, but it might be pushed back this year due to weather affecting crops.
Cabot Ellis and his team never imagined experiencing the kind of heat that has plagued the Brazos Valley over the summer.
“105, 106 degrees is not corn growing weather without any rain. Just the way we were going — soil temperatures were too hot and we were essentially “cooking out” — the germination of the seed and without any moisture in the profile the seed wasn’t viable after a day or two days," said Cabot Ellis, Texas A&M Sophomore and Aggie Agronomy Society Chair.
The organization has been preparing for this Fall's event since July, but after an extremely hot summer — it's back to square one.
“it just shows us how variable weather is in order to put our a quality product. I couldn’t imagine trying to make a living out of it, [I give] props to the farmers that are making a living and surviving through this drought," Ellis said.
Even after some rain over the weekend, conditions haven’t improved, and Brazos County is taking action.
Tuesday Brazos County Commissioners approved to extend their disaster declaration for 60 days, allowing the county to access funds to handle emergencies caused by the drought.
The Emergency Management Coordinator said the county is preparing in case resources are needed.
“What we’re anticipating is our impacts on agriculture, livestock, and crop producers," said Michele Meade, Emergency Management Coordinator with Brazos County.
As for the Aggie Agronomy Society, Ellis believes with extra resources from Texas A&M, they’ll be ready to have a healthy — and maybe even a little upgraded corn maze — later this Fall.
“Texas A&M has been great to help us fundraise. We got nominated by the "Good Bull Fund" for some improvements like having the maze grated to help with flooding, while it’s not flooding right now this will help us in the winter months," Ellis said.