The harvest is on

RITZVILLE – Area farmers are busy harvesting fields, with the drought affecting yields and protein counts of some crops.

Mark Schoesler spoke from his combine while harvesting soft white wheat Monday morning, July 19.

"We're probably about one-third or more through harvest, so we've got a feel for it," Schoesler said. "Right now I would say the majority of the soft white wheat, to date, is at a protein discount. Everything in the region will be below average."

Schoesler said his club wheat remained at a premium.

"They raised the protein count maximum from 11% to 12% on Friday, so I think all of my club wheat will be at a premium," Schoesler said, adding he was getting a little over 30 bushels, and up to 50 bushels per acre on both white wheat and club wheat.

The senator also farmed a little bit of spring barley and some fall-seeded peas.

"We're about 2/3 done harvesting peas, and we're getting about 1/3 of what you would expect on an average year," Schoesler said. "I believe the weather hurt the peas more than the wheat."

He said he had about 10 days left of harvest.

Chief of Police Dave McCormick also reported on his harvest Monday morning.

"After reviewing my weight slips from the warehouse, the first field I cut went 18.4 bushels per acre, not 13," McCormick said. "It's still not good, but a little better."

Over the weekend, while harvesting, McCormick said he thought his 320-acre field of club wheat would yield about 2/3 the usual amount, with a field nearby planted on shallow, rocky soil yielding about 13.4 bushels to the acre.

"Normally, it would be 45-50 bushels per acre," McCormick said Saturday. "A farmer west of Lind got 11 bushels per acre. I heard some fields were yielding 45-50 bushels, but that's sparse. It's too early to tell."

McCormick said he was a true believer in taking out crop insurance.

"You can't afford to not to, especially in a year like this," McCormick said. "It could put people in a position of not being able to farm anymore."

Fields of blue yield seed

John Galbreath harvested his first field of Kentucky Bluegrass for the season Saturday, July 17, after swathing it over the 4th of July weekend.

"There's a lot of moisture in the grass when I swath it, so the seeds don't shatter. Then you give it time to dry out, so you can get a combine in here to get the seeds out, without all the green matter plugging up the combine," Galbreath said. "It's kind of a fine line."

He said he didn't yet know if the drought would affect his Bluegrass harvest.

"I've heard yields are off 20% down in the Basin," Galbreath said. "Ideally, I'd like to see 1,000 pounds an acre of clean seed, but you just never know."

Galbreath sells the seed to Fusion Seed.

"Before I plant Bluegrass, I get a contract. We agree on a price, they come out and check the field and supply the seed, and give me recommendations throughout the year," Galbreath said. "At harvest time, they come and set the combine and make sure they are getting what they want."

Galbreath said Fusion supplies the trailers to load the seed into, then transport it to a cleaning facility in Rockford. The straw left over goes to cattle.

"When the seed is all harvested, and the leftover straw is put in bales and hauled off the field, I'll water this back up and then they'll run cows on here for a month or two; as long as they can mow this down for me," Galbreath said. "Then it's a lot easier for me to get rid of the sod. I work the ground pretty hard. I'll get it back down to dirt level with some sod in there, broke down as much as I can, so I get a nice seed bed for my next crop."

Galbreath is also in the process of harvesting peas, which he sells as seed.

"Last year one of the varieties was going to Gerber, so they can plant peas to use for baby food," Galbreath said.

He's also growing alfalfa, field corn and wheat.

He said he wouldn't get started on harvesting wheat for another week or so.

"Guys will be done harvesting wheat by the time I get started," Galbreath said with a laugh. "Then, after wheat, I'm pretty much done harvesting until corn. And I have quite a bit of corn to harvest."