Tom Nicolette (Texas Farm Bureau Radio Network, Waco, TX) reports in the first 27 days of May, it rained 21 of them in certain regions of Texas. Wet conditions have washed out livestock fences, and cattle are losing weight from energy expended in trudging through muddy pastures or pens. Some wheat farmers will not be able to harvest a crop.  Cotton planting is behind schedule in south Texas and the Texas Panhandle. In the Coastal Bend area, grain sorghum planting is behind schedule. Tom said, “Wet weather is making it tough for Texas farmers and ranchers in both crop and livestock operations. Corn fields are inundated and many corn plants are literally drowning. In the Winter Garden region and the Rio Grande Valley, onions are rotting in the fields due to the very wet conditions.” The Houston Chronicle reports that Texas has never had a wetter month than this one. According to State Climatologist John Nielsen-Gammon, Texas has so far received an average of 7.54 inches of rain in May, which smashes the previous record of 6.66 inches, set in June 2004.Texas rain records go back 120 years, and it comes just four years after 2011, the worst one-year drought experienced by the state.

Tom did not grow up in agriculture, but he came from Chicago, IL, to Waco, TX, where he majored in communications at Baylor University and earned a degree in editorial journalism and radio, television and film. While attending Baylor, he worked at the campus radio station as a disk jockey and as a news and sports reporter. During his college days, Tom also began working for KWTX-TV (Waco, TX) in their news department—first beginning as a news photographer and later becoming a TV producer. He was executive news producer just before he joined the Texas Farm Bureau to do public relations work. Initially, he was involved in TV production and other media. He started doing radio production in 2005, and since 2008, he’s been focusing mainly on radio news for their statewide network as TFB Network producer. The TFB Radio Network has 68 station affiliates across Texas. The Network produces several daily programs and one weekly show covering agricultural and consumer news, weather, markets, wildlife and veterinary issues. He works with Curt Lancaster (1994 NAFB President), Gene Hall and Gary Joiner.