Friday Crop Report
(written Thursday)
Harvest has entered the crazy period. You can see it everywhere — guys are in full panic mode.
Taking 22% wheat and canola up to 20% moisture is a problem most people outside the cab can’t comprehend. I hate years like this.
Yesterday we woke up with dew and the big wind never came. Went out at 1:00 and couldn’t believe it: canola had gained 3 to 5 points overnight and wheat went from 15.5 to 18. By 6:30 canola was down to 11.5, but humidity was already 87% and climbing.
Elevators aren’t averaging super-B loads. Some are sending trailer compartments back home. Imagine driving all the way to Yorkton or Moose Jaw and turning around with half a load at today’s diesel prices.
Hearing some bigger operations are bringing in more combines and taking canola at 20% moisture. Hint: putting 70,000 bushels in a bin and drying later might not work out as planned.
Just a rough year. Mine started with injectors in one tractor and a blown engine in another, and it hasn’t let up as we get to the finish line.
Talk to your neighbours. Everyone is under pressure.
The crop
About 36% of harvest is done as we approach the end of September. High overnight humidity and fog that’s almost like rain is the issue. Guys are trying everything — frost busters, aeration, full-blown dryer systems.
I blame SaskEnergy for never working with farmers on a decent on-farm storage loop or in-yard tanks to supply a dryer that wouldn’t pull gas away from towns and cities. But why work with farmers.
HRS and durum have issues the longer they stay out — the farther they were sprayed, the more new weed growth is coming from below. Some fields and varieties are standing better; others are shit. Grades all over the place, protein all over the place. The falling-number game is on again.
Barley is coming off. Some of the later stuff isn’t bad, but early-seeded crop still sitting out is crap. Greenfeed is still growing.
Flax is getting swathed, but standing flax that was sprayed isn’t getting harvested.
Lentils left look like guys are just abandoning them. Yields sucked and now they’re flat on the muddy ground.
Peas are off for the most part. Some later swaths still coming off — that can’t be nice.
Canola is coming off, but when you only get from 3:30 to 9:30 it’s short days. Some swaths finally came off Monday night. We used to bitch about having to dry canola at 4% or under; this year it’ll be 11.5 just to play the game. Yields are down a good 6 to 8 bushels from normal for most regular canola farms. If this is your first crop in five years, great.
Canary is ready but not easy going. It’s a twisted mess.
Standing oats had a great week on the windy day when it was dry. Swathed oats? Maybe just burn it now.
Hail and excess rain are causing yield loss. Lots of stuck combines, carts, trucks, etc.
Take care. Hopefully this next week gets better as we turn the calendar to fall and October.
Stay safe. It’s just a crop.
(written Thursday)
Harvest has entered the crazy period. You can see it everywhere — guys are in full panic mode.
Taking 22% wheat and canola up to 20% moisture is a problem most people outside the cab can’t comprehend. I hate years like this.
Yesterday we woke up with dew and the big wind never came. Went out at 1:00 and couldn’t believe it: canola had gained 3 to 5 points overnight and wheat went from 15.5 to 18. By 6:30 canola was down to 11.5, but humidity was already 87% and climbing.
Elevators aren’t averaging super-B loads. Some are sending trailer compartments back home. Imagine driving all the way to Yorkton or Moose Jaw and turning around with half a load at today’s diesel prices.
Hearing some bigger operations are bringing in more combines and taking canola at 20% moisture. Hint: putting 70,000 bushels in a bin and drying later might not work out as planned.
Just a rough year. Mine started with injectors in one tractor and a blown engine in another, and it hasn’t let up as we get to the finish line.
Talk to your neighbours. Everyone is under pressure.
The crop
About 36% of harvest is done as we approach the end of September. High overnight humidity and fog that’s almost like rain is the issue. Guys are trying everything — frost busters, aeration, full-blown dryer systems.
I blame SaskEnergy for never working with farmers on a decent on-farm storage loop or in-yard tanks to supply a dryer that wouldn’t pull gas away from towns and cities. But why work with farmers.
HRS and durum have issues the longer they stay out — the farther they were sprayed, the more new weed growth is coming from below. Some fields and varieties are standing better; others are shit. Grades all over the place, protein all over the place. The falling-number game is on again.
Barley is coming off. Some of the later stuff isn’t bad, but early-seeded crop still sitting out is crap. Greenfeed is still growing.
Flax is getting swathed, but standing flax that was sprayed isn’t getting harvested.
Lentils left look like guys are just abandoning them. Yields sucked and now they’re flat on the muddy ground.
Peas are off for the most part. Some later swaths still coming off — that can’t be nice.
Canola is coming off, but when you only get from 3:30 to 9:30 it’s short days. Some swaths finally came off Monday night. We used to bitch about having to dry canola at 4% or under; this year it’ll be 11.5 just to play the game. Yields are down a good 6 to 8 bushels from normal for most regular canola farms. If this is your first crop in five years, great.
Canary is ready but not easy going. It’s a twisted mess.
Standing oats had a great week on the windy day when it was dry. Swathed oats? Maybe just burn it now.
Hail and excess rain are causing yield loss. Lots of stuck combines, carts, trucks, etc.
Take care. Hopefully this next week gets better as we turn the calendar to fall and October.
Stay safe. It’s just a crop.
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