Mother Nature Must Believe in Averages

[AlbertaFarmer5]

Under a rainfall warning, and pouring rain right now, 3" forecast plus snow, and supposed to rain all week. It rained all spring, made seeding ( and harvesting a nightmare. Quit raining June 12, very little meaningful rain from then until last week (16% of normal in that period) when we had 1.25". Single digit highs all week in the forecast too. So on paper, this growing season was perfect. Lots of heat units, average rain totals. If only the crops understood the concept of averages.

Finally got started harvest today. Combined a bunch of very tough (OK, damp, the tester doesn't even go that high) CPS wheat. Rain held off until almost dark. After last year, when we had a few days in Sept when it was possible to harvest except the grain was very tough, then a few more days in mid to late November( when it still rained us out almost every day), I figured we had better get some grain harvested at any moisture level. Am I being irrational to be hitting the panic button in the middle of September? Surely was can't have a repeat of last year again? The good news is that the cracks in the ground should absorb most of the rain before it gets saturated again.

[GDR]

Under a rainfall warning, and pouring rain right now, 3" forecast plus snow, and supposed to rain all week. It rained all spring, made seeding ( and harvesting a nightmare. Quit raining June 12, very little meaningful rain from then until last week (16% of normal in that period) when we had 1.25". Single digit highs all week in the forecast too. So on paper, this growing season was perfect. Lots of heat units, average rain totals. If only the crops understood the concept of averages.

Finally got started harvest today. Combined a bunch of very tough (OK, damp, the tester doesn't even go that high) CPS wheat. Rain held off until almost dark. After last year, when we had a few days in Sept when it was possible to harvest except the grain was very tough, then a few more days in mid to late November( when it still rained us out almost every day), I figured we had better get some grain harvested at any moisture level. Am I being irrational to be hitting the panic button in the middle of September? Surely was can't have a repeat of last year again? The good news is that the cracks in the ground should absorb most of the rain before it gets saturated again.

I feel your pain!

Central AB normally does more combining in October than September. After last year it's kinda a roller coaster of emotion with weather changes, should have lots of time but thought that last year too and had to find time this spring.

We are not quite half done area more like 60 to 70 done I think. Some guys finished some haven't started.

Yes you are irrational, I think.😁

[the big wheel]

That's not a good situation for the nerves. Harvest when you can as long as you can dry it or keep up is what I d do. In a way the rain may be a blessing for next year who knows. Good luck though!!

[ajl]

At this point it is too late to panic. The sound you hear is nailing of the coffin lid. Plan now for spring harvest and try not to have it interfere with the 2018 crop as much as it did this year. 3 inches of rain in mid September is a death sentence as you never get enough heat any more to evaporate all this water. Harvest just getting going here (Edmonton region as well) and yesterday the weather was nice but the wheat was not dry. What is it going to take now to get it dry. All that spring snow just put us 2 weeks behind and will not catch up now.

[farmaholic]

I don't want to give you any false hope. But you never know, you may get an opportunity yet. It's not over till it's over.

Best of luck. I'd gladly take your rain if I could, as I'm sure you'd give it.

[nicolaas]

Peas and winter crops done. wheat to green, was taking 20% barley to dry. I do not like drying wheat as I seem to loose a grade, Rain should not hurt as majority not quite cured. canola too green yet, standing and swathed. 20% done. lots of time left. most combining gets done in October anyways (except for last year). Last year went hard from mid august to end of September (12 days actual combining) and got to 70% done. some days were 20 hours of combining. We also combined 2 days in November after swaths froze prior to 2 ft of snow. This year should be better, unless rain gives .4% sprouting in wheat and makes it feed.

We are supposed to have a dry October and November, so do not panic. it is only mid September. It is what it is.

[nicolaas]

by the way, spring harvest is quick, dry and fun. I just wish it was worth something

[AlbertaFarmer5]

Normally we do most combining in October, and this weather wouldn't have me too concerned, but last year when we couldn't turn a wheel from mid Sept till mid Nov, it tends to leave a permanent imprint in one's memory.

And to add insult to injury, inspite of all the hot dry weather, crops really weren't as mature as one would expect. We not have lots of frozen canola. Always expect to have the top pods freeze off, canola just doesn't know when to quit around here, but will be a little more serious this year, partly because there was no rain or wind to lay things down and tangle up, the upright plants didn't have a thick enough canopy to insulate the bottom from the frost. Always amazes me how other places can seed into early June and be harvesting by now, we seed in early May, and takes until late October to be remotely mature( coldest wettest place on prairies).

[nicolaas]

What limits us is our wet storage. i'm starting to think that a guy should have 20000 bu plus in wet bin storage so you can keep going when you can. Its bad enough drying this crap without the added work of having to move wet grain around from various bins. whenever I start doing that it turns nice and everyone else gets their crop off dry! Hindsite is always 20/20

[AlbertaFarmer5]

by the way, spring harvest is quick, dry and fun. I just wish it was worth something

I wish I could agree with that statement. Here it was slow and painful. Ground wouldn't dry under the mat of crop, getting stuck constantly, ruts everywhere. Crop lifters, and scraping the the crop off the mud all the way. All but ruined two straight cut headers, didn't do the combines any good either. Dust so thick I couldn't even see the center of the header at times. It was however very dry, and not worth much in the end.

[nicolaas]

we had everything swathed in fall in mud. except for one field. We harvested the swathed in april, the straight cut in mid june. did not seed june harvested. Lots of ruts no matter when it was harvested. Worked everything in order to seed. first time in years. april harvest was fast.

[nicolaas]

one thing I learned, a flex header is very good at picking rocks in the spring

[AlbertaFarmer5]

one thing I learned, a flex header is very good at picking rocks in the spring

A rigid header is also a very effective rock picker under those conditions. And root picker, and crop lifter picker etc.