ELKTON, Ky. — No doubt, folks are tired of living in the drought and are certainly tired of hearing about it. But there are a few things to note concerning the hot, dry summer of 2012.

First, the state’s wheat crop is turning out better than thought after suffering through a spring freeze, and that dry weather could actually help yields. The early April freeze created damage of some degree, according to location and wheat varieties, in nearly every wheat field in the state.

But early estimates of losses improved as the dry conditions prevented further damage from disease. Curt Judy is the ag extension agent in Todd County, situated in the heart of Kentucky’s Wheat Belt. He said a bad situation could have turned out to be much worse, but thanks to a little luck and the dry conditions, this year’s wheat crop will be okay.

“I think for the most part the wheat turned out better than what most people were anticipating,” he said. “The spring freeze touched every field in this area and we knew it was going to affect yield.”

He said location in the field, planting times and plant varieties were factors in the amount of damage received, but every indication points to the dry weather also as a contributor to saving some of the crop.

“Wheat does well when it’s dry and we wound up with what might have been a nearly ideal growing season,” he said. “I don’t know if we could have had any weather that would have made it better, but it suited the wheat.”

Still, once all is counted, the average yield will vary from producer to producer. Judy said growers will likely still see below what they have come to expect, but better than what it could have been.

“This may be a little less than average, but the quality was good and the weather was good for making quality wheat,” he said. “You could say we dodged a bullet – but with the freeze we had and the damage that was done, it was almost like we didn’t dodge it, we got hit but had a really good recovery. Everything worked out about as well as it could.”

Lloyd Murdock, extension soil specialist with the University of Kentucky (UK) College of Agriculture, said while the freeze caused damage, there was no indication the drought caused any for the wheat crop.

“It’s so dry, but from what I can tell, there were no diseases problems or insect problems, or anything like that,” he said.

His estimates for expected yield are pretty good considering what could have happened. “I’ve heard it could be from 62 to 66 (bushels per acre), but that is pretty darn good. We had a significant amount of freeze in a lot of areas, so we did really well, I thought,” Murdock said.

While wheat producers may be breathing a sigh of relief, those growing nearly any other crop are hoping for rain soon. This is turning out to be the kind of year dreaded by farmers and will, in turn be felt at the food counter, affecting everyone who eats.

Legislators may take note of the problems facing farmers this year as they wade through the farm bill. In both the Senate and early House versions of the bill, direct payments to farmers have been eliminated. Those supports have been one of the things farmers relied on in the past when a weather event like the one taking place right now occurs.

Many producers will turn to their insurance policies to break even this year. The next farm bill will have provisions to “prop up” crop insurance as a way to handle bad crop years, something agriculture experts hope will be enough. But even with current direct payments in place, they haven’t always been adequate to cover the kind of losses farmers are likely to face this year.

Kentucky Farm Bureau President and American Farm Bureau Federation board member Mark Haney said this kind of year that is a good example of why there needs to be some type of safeguard in place.

“Direct payments were a large part of the money allocated to the Commodity Title of the farm bill, but, when they are spread out to farmers across the nation on an individual basis, they are not enough to have a significant impact on production losses,” he said. “This year’s extreme weather conditions are a great example of why safety nets are needed to protect our nation’s crop production, but the American Farm Bureau Federation is now focused on supporting a strong crop insurance program to meet those needs.”

UK grain crop specialist Chad Lee sees firsthand the struggles producers face in times such as these. He said the importance of a stable food supply and the variability that comes about from food production is probably as evident this year as it has ever been.

“It is certainly a demonstration as to why a safety net is important in our system,” Lee said. “We have got to have some form of safety net.”

He said the current crop insurance program should allow producers being hit hard by the weather to stay in business another year. He also said for the last two years, the corn has been good enough to hopefully give producers a bit of padding.

”That’s a blessing and is certainly a lesson on the variability in crop production,” Lee added.