Augember? Fogust? Bad weather dampens mood

Soggy, cold weather in much of Newfoundland and Labrador this summer has delayed crops, soured celebrations and even changed how people shop.

Heavy fog hung over the St. John's area Thursday, with drizzle and temperatures around 10 C in line with the forecast for much of the island. Labrador, by contrast, has been enjoying more seasonable weather this week.

"It's been frustrating. Challenging," said dairy farmer Colin Lester who grows hay to feed his cows. While the rain has helped growth, it's been too damp and cold this year to bring in quality hay.

"We've got volume but we don't have quality," he said. "So that means we got to import a lot of high-protein grains to offset that. Of course, that drives our cost of production up."

His brother John Lester — who grows vegetables and operates greenhouses at a nearby farm — said the weather has been confounding.

"I can't compare it to anything else because I've never really experienced this kind of weather before," said Lester, whose vegetables are well behind. However, a longer ripening period has extended his strawberry season and his greenhouses are still producing.

The weather has had other effects, including for retailers, some of whom have had to adapt day by day.

"Weather is always an influencing factor for our business," said Sherry George, who owns the swimsuit store Take The Plunge.

"As you can see we sell a lot of great things for the summer and when we don't get really good weather locally, it certainly does affect us."

Kim Winsor, who owns a women's clothing boutique in downtown St. John's, said poor weather is nothing new.

"I learned a long time ago not to buy high season in the summer," she said. To compensate, she stocks clothes that customers can use to complement summer dresses.

In an interview, George said she can wait the weather out.

"You have to be patient and persistent," she said. "When we have no control over the weather, there's nothing else we can do."