CAIRO, Ga. (WCTV) - Despite the increase in daily showers after South Georgia experienced extreme drought, the rain has apparently overstayed its welcome.

Farmer and rancher Bobby Holden said the soil has had enough rain.

“It’s got enough nutrients and water that it’s going into its reproductive phase,” he said.

Still, the rain has been an answered prayer by helping his pasture rebound from a severe dry spell.

“When we talked in the early spring, we had not had any rain the grass just did not recover. Whatever the cow consumed, it stayed that way,” Holden said.

The water is allowing ranchers to hold off on costly irrigation systems, Holden said, which could save about $2,000 a month. He said the livestock are also enjoying their hydrated treats.

“There’s a lot less worry, the number one key to a good rancher [is] you love your cows and you like it when they are happy, you’re happy,” the rancher said. The grass is definitely greener for some in South Georgia, but for others, it’s just too wet, delaying work and creating new challenges.

More news out of South Georgia:

Cale Cloud, an Agricultural and Natural Resources Agent with the Grady County Extension Service, said the extra rainfall could still cause issues.

“Vegetable production, it’s been terrible too. A lot of this, a lot of plants are starting to die from diseases such as phytophthora. All of this rainfall also flares up diseases such as bacterial diseases and fruits just rooting in the field,” Cloud said.

According to data from the University of Georgia Weather Network, Cairo has seen 8.53 inches of rainfall in the past 30 days. This is 1.58 times more rain than normal over the last month.

Glenn Heard with Brinson Farms said the rainy weather also created a setback for their peanut and cotton planting. It’s also impacting fertilizer treatments. Thankfully, the corn season is shaping out to be successful for Brinson Farms but Heard said they’re watching conditions closely and are ready to adapt.

“We can’t spray our herbicides and pesticides for that period of time and weeds keep growing if it’s raining or not, it’s a problem we get behind on our work, fertilizer we get behind on our schedule but after it clears up we have some methods on catching back up. Too much rain is a problem,” Heard said.

Cloud said some row crop growers in the Grady County area are still waiting for a dry sunny day so they can catch up on their work and start planting. However, more rain is headed their way.

To keep up with the latest news as it develops, follow WCTV on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Nextdoor and X (Twitter).

Have a news tip or see an error? Write to us here. Please include the article’s headline in your message.

Be the first to see all the biggest headlines by downloading the WCTV News app. Click here to get started.

Copyright 2026 WCTV. All rights reserved.