Some area ginseng farmers can now apply for some help after a tough growing season. Marathon and Lincoln counties have been declared as disaster counties by the federal agriculture department. That means farmers who suffered through a tough season last year can apply for emergency loans.

The rainy September hurt ginseng growers especially, destroying many of their valuable crops. Director of Ginseng & Herb CO-OP, Keary Drath says, "Back in 2010 we had snow and that damaged a lot of crops to begin with. Then with the compounding rain effect here this last year, we had more ginseng that was rotted away."

The money that the farmers would receive is a federal loan, meaning they will have to pay it back once they can afford to. For farmers to receive the loan, they have to meet certain qualifications set by the farm service agency.