Shandong suffers its worst drought in 50 years

China's Shandong province is experiencing its worst drought in half a century.

Along with parts in the northeast of the country, China's Shandong province is experiencing its worst drought in half a century.

Even the drought resistant peanut cannot bare the persistent dry weather.

In the city of Anqiu, one of the key producing areas of corn and peanuts in Shandong province, there are seedlings without seeds.

"I'm very worried about the crops. Usually at this time of the year, corn seedlings are high, but this year they are hardly growing."

The timing of the dry spell is particularly challenging for the agriculture industry when the grain needs water the most.

"Over 50 percent of the crops are affected by the drought in Anqiu. And more than 2 thousand hectares of crops have no yield," Zhang Xinhua, agronomist with Shandong Anqiu Agricultural Bureau, said.

The lingering drought has caused a severe shortage of surface water. To tackle the problem, local power supply stations have built new electric lines for 2 thousand irrigation wells.