Hollister ranchers are hoping this week’s series of rainstorms can make up for a dismal year so far.
Hollister’s forecast is calling for the series of systems to start rolling through Tuesday morning and possibly continuing sporadically through next Monday.
Even with nearly three inches of new rainfall projected, as noted by Monterey area National Weather Service forecaster Diana Henderson, it probably won’t make up for a mere 4.35 inches in Hollister since last July – which amounts for 32 percent of normal precipitation for this time of year.
The low rainfall to this point has particularly hurt cattle ranchers, said Agriculture Commissioner Ron Ross, while it also has been a problem for a relatively small hay industry in the county.
“We’re way behind normal,” Ross said. “I’ve never seen a year like this.”
Ross explained that cattle producers rely on rain during the winter to make the grass grow.
“So with the lack of rainfall, it means the cattle basically don’t have hardly anything to eat,” he said.
He noted that some ranchers use supplemental hay, but with that crop so limited by the rain as well, it has resulted in skyrocketed prices.
“They’ve kind of had a double whammy with high hay prices and low rainfall,” he said.
