Acadiana Business

La. farms and timber still recovering from drought

by Walter Pierce

The U.S. Department of Agriculture declared 36 Louisiana parishes drought disaster areas in 2010. In 2011, seven parishes were named drought disaster areas along with 213 Texas counties.

SHREVEPORT, La. (AP) - North Louisiana farmers and timber growers say they're beginning to recover from drought in 2010 and 2011. But The Times of Shreveport reports it will take time to rebuild cattle herds and that trees stressed by the drought could continue to die for another two years.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture declared 36 Louisiana parishes drought disaster areas in 2010. In 2011, seven parishes were named drought disaster areas along with 213 Texas counties.

Caddo Parish cattleman Marty Wooldridge culled about 100 head from his herd starting in 2010 because it cost too much to keep them fed. Last year, he started keeping more heifers to increase the herd. But he's wary of expanding too fast after the drought destroyed the grass root systems in some of his pastures.