A soggy spring gave way to a glorious summer and golden fall and now Abbotsford farmers are reaping the reward.

Local grower Mike Lepp said the great autumn weather is a welcome reprieve from a shaky start to the season in May and June.

"It's really nice. I'm not going to lie," said Lepp.

"The last four years, it's been progressively worse in the spring, but this year we're getting an unreal fall."

This September and August were the driest since 1945 when records were first kept, according to Environment Canada.

In the two months combined, Abbotsford received 10.4 millimetres of rain and a plethora of sun.

The prolonged wet and cold weather in May and June meant crops like corn and cucumbers didn't get going until mid-June.

And on the Lepp Farm, the planting season started so late that peas and beans were more or less a washout.

"As far as I'm concerned, summer started on July 4," said Lepp.

But having a later fall season has helped bolster a diminished corn crop and led to a great harvest of pumpkins, gourds and squashes.

"We're even picking a lot of stuff, like squashes, earlier this year," said Lepp.

What's more, the good weather has also been good for sales at the Lepp Farm Market.

"Often by Labour Day, corn sales drop but because of the sunshine, they held up for longer."

Audrey Neufeld of Neufeld Farms agreed the beautiful fall provided relief for growers after the long wet spring.

"After we survived the rain, it's been good. It's been awesome for the strawberries and corn," Neufeld said.

"We're still picking everbearing strawberries until frost. The flavour is fantastic. There's an abundance out there."

The other crops that ripen later in the season are also doing well despite the lack of rain.

"You can always water [crops]," she said. "Pumpkins were great this year. They need the sun to colour."

Robert Butler of the B.C. Potato and Vegetable Growers' Association said farmers are working in fields dawn to dusk to take advantage of the ideal harvest conditions and get everything in before the rain starts.

"They are anxious to get their crops in. Most are going from early morning to night," said Butler, adding the potato crop seems to be a good one.

"They are also harvesting pumpkins a little early and it's thanks to the weather.

"There's been a lot more irrigation this year obviously, but with good weather and good water you have a larger degree of control over your crop."

Lepp said farmers were "blessed" to have the fall turn out fine.

"I'm sure if everyone had had a great spring, it would have been ideal," he said.

"That's farming for you. Farmers are hard to please, but it's sure fun work."

- with files by Jean Konda-Witte

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