Days after heavy rain moved through the area, floodwaters are still creating problems for local farms and nurseries, forcing some to close to visitors and adding to months of weather-related challenges.
WPTV reporter Christy Waite visited Happy Place Ranch in Palm City, where standing water surrounds much of the property as the owners work to recover from the flooding.
WATCH REPORT BELOW:
For owner Amanda Cimorelli, seeing the ranch underwater has been emotional.
"It's crushing," Cimorelli said as she fought back tears. "It's sad."
She said they expected rain, but not the amount that ultimately fell.
"We figured it was just rain. It just didn't stop. It was relentless," she said.
For seven years, Happy Place Ranch has hosted horse shows, riding lessons, birthday parties and other activities. Now, the flooding has forced the ranch to close, costing the business money while adding new expenses.
Cimorelli said the ranch has been losing revenue since October as weather forced it to cancel activities, including its fall festival and horse shows.
The flooding could now force the ranch to cancel two upcoming birthday parties, something Cimorelli said has never happened in the seven years they have been there.
"It's just thousands and thousands of dollars of revenue lost and extra cash going out that we really don't have right now," she said.
One of those added expenses is hay. With the flooding affecting the property, the ranch is spending more money to make sure its animals have what they need.
Despite the flooding, Cimorelli said all of the animals are OK. The challenge is finding enough dry space for them.
"I have nowhere to put farm animals. We got everyone in the barn as much as we can," she said.
For now, the ranch is focused on cleaning up and waiting for the water to recede.
"All we can do is wait," Cimorelli said. "Just wait and figure it out day by day."
Meanwhile, in Loxahatchee Groves, Gardino Nursery is also dealing with flooding after an already difficult year of weather extremes.
Owner Sid Gardino said the nursery has endured a freeze, drought and now excess water.
"The freeze was probably the worst we have experienced," Gardino said. "Then the drought came, and I prayed for rain. I think I prayed too hard because now we have all of this."
Water reached shin level in some areas, while thick mud made it difficult to walk around the property.
"It's frustrating. It's hard to walk with this much rain. We are working at 20% capacity," Gardino said.
Gardino Nursery operates by appointment only. The nursery said it is still able to ship products, but customers currently cannot visit the property to see plants in person.
The business does not yet know how much revenue has been lost because of the flooding.
There is some encouraging news. Gardino said the property is already beginning to recover. They hope that if the sunny and warm weather continues, they can be back open by next week.
