Recent high rainfall amounts around Manhattan have impacted agriculture. From January to May, Manhattan received a total rainfall of 23.52 inches. The average January-May rainfall for Manhattan is 13.28 inches, which makes this year well above average.

Wayne Kent, who owns farmland in Wakefield, Kan., said his farm had approximately 15.5 inches of rain in May, which has had negative effects.

"It's prevented spring planting. Forty-five percent of soybeans are still in the ground. Our five-year average is 56 percent, which means they're late. It made wheat harvesting later and prevented us from harvesting alfalfa," Kent said.

Some of Kent's low-lying land has been flooded, and the crops planted there, like wheat, will have to be replanted. Kent said he thinks this loss of crops will hurt him financially.

"We probably lost one cutting of hay and there is probably a reduction in the yield of wheat crops. I don't know about the milo and soybeans yet; it might not affect them," Kent said.

In addition to flooding, he said the wet weather has contributed to the amount of diseases attacking crops.

"We have rust in our wheat crop. Rust reduces the potential yield, and the wet favors fungus diseases. We might be concerned with soybean rust," Kent said.

However, the fungal pathogens are helpful to the crops, because they control the insect population. The rainfall also reduces the number of insects in other ways.

"We haven't had the early season pest problems that we usually have. This is probably because early pests aren't able to survive," said Jeffery Whitworth, assistant professor of entomology.

Whitworth said insects can't survive with such high moisture. Some drown because of the hard rain and runoff, and some eggs never hatch. Those that survive tend to run into problems elsewhere.

"When soil is saturated with moisture, insects go someplace else other than their normal underground homes to survive. When they do, they are exposed to predators and parasites much more," Whitworth said.

This ultimately benefits the crops, because farmers use less pesticide, which saves money and helps the environment.

Another cause of crop damage is wind erosion. The rain aids crops in this respect because more plants grow and protect the soil.

When more plants grow above the soil, it makes it harder for wind erosion to occur. This is an advantage because wind erosion can damage soil in different ways.

"When there is wind erosion and plants are smaller, it can do one of three things: it can 'sand blast' young plants, bury crops, or uncover crops and expose the roots and seeds and cause a crop failure," USDA soil scientist John Tatarko said.

The above average rainfall Manhattan has received this year has had both positive and negative effects on agriculture. Whether or not the benefits outweigh the disadvantages is yet to be seen.