Chile farmer mourns loss of famed crop By Tim Korte; The Associated Press HATCH, N.M. - Chile farmer Elizabeth Soto needed only one look to know that her crop won't fare well. A wall of water raced through this southern New Mexico farming community, forcing evacuations and leaving standing water in many fields. When the water receded, it became apparent that the chilees were wiped out. "It's gone," she said. "Completely and totally." Her modular home floated slightly off its blocks after heavy rains forced a breach in a diversion ditch north of Hatch on Tuesday, causing flooding in the village that is famous for its spicy hot chile peppers. The home probably can be repaired using flood insurance, but the chilees are another matter. Hatch is one of the nation's leading chile producers and proclaims itself the Chile Capital of the World. An annual chile festival during Labor Day draws tens of thousands of tourists. In 2004, New Mexico farmers produced 106,850 tons of chile worth more than $50 million. Agriculture officials say the chile industry contributes more than $400 million annually to the state's economy. After Soto's field was submerged under 8 feet of water, she realized the work that went into her crop had been futile. Then she started crying. "We are very, very, very sentimental about our chile," Soto said. "This is a huge part of our family life, our culture. It means more than just money. My mom, my dad, my husband and me have been working so hard." Crews stayed up overnight to drain the field. Pumps moaned and chugged hour after hour, spitting a stream of water into an irrigation channel. Moisture isn't good for the long green chilees. In fact, when New Mexico experiences a wet winter, chile farmers worry about the notorious curly-top virus that can devastate the crop before it even begins to grow. Summer rains promote the growth of three crop diseases: phytophthora root rot - or chile wilt - powdery mildew and bacterial spot. Not to mention, soggy fields make harvesting nearly impossible. Making matters worse for Soto and her family, this year's batch was being hailed across New Mexico as a quality crop. "It was beautiful chile," her father, Refugio Zaragoza, said in Spanish. "We were so proud of it. It had a lot of fruit." Despite the devastation in Hatch, there's good news for chile lovers. The storm that led to the flooding didn't make a big difference for the larger farms north of town. And, of course, there are many other chile farms across New Mexico. Gene Baca, president of the New Mexico Chile Association and vice president of Bueno Foods, said most of the state's crop is raised in the Deming area and Hatch "is a fairly small part of where chile is grown in New Mexico." "They have the name that most people associate with chile in the state, but there's actually not a lot of chile grown in that area," Baca said. John White, Dona Ana County extension agent, said about 2,000 to 3,000 acres of chile are planted in the Hatch area - about half of the 5,500 acres of chile planted in the county. White said all farmers can do now is hope for the best. "The weather prediction is for more and more rain," he said. "Hatch has a notoriety for chile and all this rain could drive the price up if (their chile) becomes this object that's hard to get ahold of." Associated Press Writer Melanie Dabovich contributed to this report. -- ENJOY!!! -------- UNCLE DIRTY DAVE'S KITCHEN -- Home of Yaaaaa Hooooo Aaahhh!!! HOT SAUCE and Hardin Cider "Not all chemicals are bad. Without chemicals such as hydrogen and oxygen, for example, there would be no way to make water, a vital ingredient in beer." --Dave Barry