CLINTON, Ind. (WTHI) - As summer is inching closer, warmer temperatures are coming too.

The warmth is welcomed by farmers, but they need a little more than just that.

"We haven't, at least in our particular fields, we haven't seen substantial rainfall since about the 15th of April."

Ed Shew is a local farmer in Clinton, Indiana.

He says the planting season went well, and quick, but the lack of rain now affects more than just plant growth.

"Well for us right now, it just affects, the ground is so hard we're having some difficulty. We even quit last week, planting because we couldn't get the planter in the ground."

But it goes farther than that.

Drier soil means harder ground, which means for farmers, you don't want to be in the field any more than you have to.

"We tend not to like to till the ground any more than we have to, because every time you work the ground up, you're gonna lose that much more moisture."

So if you asked a farmer what they need right now, their answer is pretty simple.

"I'd like a good inch of rain, takes all day to be here. That would be ideal."

But for now, Shew is hopeful that good summer rains are still coming to bring that much needed water to his crops.