Strong storms moving through Central Florida on Tuesday dumped a lot of hail, causing damage to cars, screens and roofs, and some farmers say they also took a hit.

It could be several weeks before the owners of Showcase of Citrus near Clermont in Lake County know the full extent of the damage done to their citrus crop by the storms. But they believe thousands of pieces of fruit were lost thanks to hail — some the size of golf balls.  

On Wednesday, Showcase of Citrus owner and operator Tara Boshell was assessing the impact the hailstorm had on her growing citrus crop.

“If you look all along here, it’s just a hot mess,” she said. “But farmers don’t usually quit — we keep trudging through and making the best with what we’re handed.”  

For Boshell — who said she's never seen a hailstorm like the one that hit her farm Tuesday — it’s just the latest onslaught from mother nature after two hard freezes in recent years, and two hurricanes last fall.  She says the hail knocked more leaves off her citrus trees than the hurricanes did.

“Mother Nature’s typically in charge of farming, and it is what it is, we trudge through, and this tree, all of the trees will need a lot more TLC,” she said.  “And they’ll make it. They’re tough, tough little trees.”

Citrus experts with the University of Florida say fewer leaves means less nutrition for the fruit, and damaged fruit can be more susceptible to pests or disease. Boshell says it was fortunate that this year’s citrus “u-pick” season was already over by the time the storms hit.

Her focus now is on nurturing the fruit now growing for next year’s season, despite another setback.

“We’re just in the beginning phases of seeing the damage," Boshell said. "We will probably see a lot of broken branches and more leaves will fall off, just because they don’t have the strength to recuperate. But they will come back — we will have a crop next year."