East Texas peach and berry farmers are hoping for long periods of the frigid temperatures to help ensure more budding and fruit in spring and summer. Depending on the variety, fruit trees and bushes need 450-to-700 chill hours or below 45 degrees each winter, to produce well. Past warm winters with not enough chill hours have forced some orchards to close down, and those owners can see it happening again if we have another warm winter.

"From 86 on we've had bad bad years and worse, with all the hail storms, the late frost and then you know the market not being as good as it used to be. It's been getting real tuff" says former Upshur county peach orchard operator Victor Hill.

Produce purchased by merchants from local fruit growers, keeps them from having to buy more expensive imported produce.