VIDALIA — Hurricane Gustav’s winds and rain had a strong effect on Louisiana’s agriculture production.

Louisiana Agriculture Commissioner Mike Strain said the storm had an adverse affect on as much as 50 percent of the state’s sweet potato crop, 30 percent of the cotton crop and between 25 and 45 percent of the sugar cane crop.

Cotton crops — a major production crop in Concordia Parish — were particularly vulnerable. If the cotton boll was already open, there was a good chance the cotton could have just blown away in the high winds.

Even soybeans were affected by the storm, and that’s why local farmer Greg Poole spent the days before the storm trying to harvest as much of his crop as he could.

“Any time you have cloudy, humid conditions, it causes the seed to sprout,” Poole said before the storm. “If you don’t get sun immediately after a rain, your seed will try to put out a root. It will be still in the (seed) hull, trying to reproduce.”

Any leftover beans were swollen with moisture. The beans may have deteriorated as they began to dry out and return to their normal size.

Likewise, the continued moisture in the fields affected the sweet potato crop, and any corn or milo left in the field was likely blown down.

However, not all soybeans were subject to loss.

“If it is still green, it is in good shape,” because the late-cropped green plants still have some give when the wind blows them, Poole said.

The damage assessment is still under way statewide. Strain has been reported as saying he spoke with the President about the state of the agriculture industry following the hurricane, and he expects a declaration of agricultural disaster to be signed.