Filed by Ben Allen in Local News.
February 13, 2013

The following post was written by KOSU’s Paige Warren.

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Seeing snow flakes Tuesday had some Oklahoma farmers jumping for joy.

Mike Spradling, President of the Farm Bureau, says farmers and ranchers will take what they can get, as long as it’s not ice.

But Gary McManus, Associate State Climatologist for Oklahoma, says it depends on the farming operation – some like it, some don’t.

“If you’re wanting to fill up a stock pond, or a farm pond or a lake, it’s not going to help that much. But it sure starts up that first process of ending the drought and that’s getting the soil moisture replenished.”

Any rain following this snow, will have a better chance of filling the ponds, says McManus. He adds a drier spring is expected but new data is coming out next week.

Spradling says any moisture helps farmers produce bigger and better food products, and this leads to more reasonable prices at the grocery store.