Farmers can clear debris from the fields after a flood.
They can level out damaged ground, and remove sand deposits.
The one enemy they can't fight is the water itself.
The timing of a flood is what can be the most devastating, Butler County farmers know.
In 2017, high water prevented the Yarbro family from planting some acres for the first time since the land was purchased by their father after World War II.
This land was among several thousand acres of rice, corn and soybean fields that remained under water from May to September 2017 in the southern portion of the county.
Heavy rain put the Black River above flood stage, and a levee break emptied a lot of that flooding into those fields. Early attempts by a drainage district to repair the break failed.
"Basically, we didn't get a crop," said Ron Yarbro. "It was too late to plant."
Yarbro had about 400 acres impacted, while his brother Bruce Yarbro says at least 3,000 Butler County acres stayed under until Sept. 20.
"No one was able to get anything out by then. Nothing even got planted," Bruce Yarbro said.
The Yarbros' father bought the land they farm more than 70 years ago.
The brothers called last year the never-ending flood.
Insurance helped, said Yarbro, but it was a fraction of what the crops themselves would have earned. Still, he said, it was better for his family than for those farmers without insurance.
Less water and a different time of year meant that a river surge in February that also caused a levee break in southern Butler County had less impact.
"It's early enough, it's not affecting anything. If we had this same situation in May, it's going to really be a problem, and often times we do," said Sam Atwell, an agronomist with the University of Missouri Extension Council.
Rice planting won't start until the end of March or early April, Atwell said.
Winter wheat crops are growing now, he explained, but flooding typically occurs along waterways, within about a mile of the Black River, St. Francis River, Little Black River and Cane Creek.
"They'll flood and they'll go back down when it quits raining. Generally, there's not a lot of damage," he said.
A few farmers will have to deal with damage from a strong flow of water near drainage pipes, or some sand deposits, but that is typically limited, he said.
Yarbro said he had about 80 acres that needed to be leveled again, in order for irrigation to work properly.
The location of the heaviest rainfall within a watershed also impacts flooding, Atwell said.
For Butler County, it can be more devastating to have heavy rain along the Eleven Point River, Current River and in the Piedmont, Mo., area.
"We get a pile of water off of that, plus our local rain, which really causes our headaches," Atwell said. "Where it rains has as much impact on farmers as when."
Butler County farmers face these same concerns nearly every year, Atwell said.
Bruce Yarbro isn't prepared to say this year will be better than 2017.
The fields are ready to plant, but the Black River could still reach 19 feet again before the end of a wet spring, he says.
"If the river comes up and the water comes out there, it will affect us. The river just hasn't come up yet," said Bruce Yarbro.