<img height="1" width="1" style="display:none" src="https://www.facebook.com/tr?id=192888919167017&amp;ev=PageView&amp;noscript=1">
Tuesday, March 19, 2024
March 19, 2024

Linkedin Pinterest

Heat pushes wheat to an early harvest

The Columbian
Published:

WALLA WALLA — Dry, hot conditions have sparked an early start to this year’s harvests of winter wheat and peas.

Winter wheat harvest normally gets underway in late July, but some farmers are already at work bringing in their crop or will be soon. Pea harvests also got underway early and have been finished in many places.

“Yeah, this heat is pushing (the wheat harvest) along pretty quick,” said Craig Noble, who farms land along Corkrum Road north of Walla Walla. Noble said this year he was planning to start harvest about July 15, while in previous years harvest didn’t start until July 20-25.

Perry Dozier, a Walla Walla County commissioner who farms near Waitsburg, said “it’s going to be an early start without a doubt.” He said normally wheat harvest would start in mid-July.

The observations by Noble and Dozier tallies with the June 29 crop condition report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which said winter wheat harvest in Southeast Washington was expected to begin 10 days earlier than normal.

The report noted there have been no reports of possible crop damage due to weather conditions. However the hot, dry conditions are likely to affect the yields, Noble and others said.

The hot, dry weather will cause the wheat kernels to be smaller, resulting in the weight per bushel being be lower.

“This is when the berries get their growth,” Noble said. “If it were 85 degrees and there were lots of moisture, they would be at their maximum size.”

Loading...