(Photo by David Silverman/Getty Images Europe)
WICHITA, Kan. — Untimely rainfall has led to an epidemic of a toxic fungal disease in some fields of winter wheat, reducing yields and quality just as harvest gets under way in the nation's breadbasket, industry experts say.
Low levels of Fusarium head blight, also known as "head scab," are not uncommon in grain crops. But this season the disease appears to be widespread, particularly in Kansas where rain fell this spring when winter wheat was flowering.
Some scab also has been reported in Missouri and north-central Oklahoma. The extent of infestation in northern wheat-producing states may not be known until those crops reach maturity.
"Based on past yield loss estimates, this is going to represent a total loss to Kansas wheat production of 1 or 2 percent," said Erick DeWolf, a plant pathologist at Kansas State University. "It is not trivial, but it is not the end of the world, either."
That represents a potential yield loss worth $50 million for Kansas farmers, based on a forecast of production and current wheat prices, said Mike Woolverton, a grain marketing economist at Kansas State.
The 'idea' of USA Farmers becoming the next OPEC has everyone in a panic.
It would seem as though the USA harvest according to early reports are seeing returns in the high 50s and low 60s, with protein content 'averaging' about 10%.
Wheat fields are finally beginning to dry out in much of the southern half of Kansas, allowing many farmers to begin wheat harvest over the weekend. Harvest has reached as far north as Salina in central Kansas, yet progress has languished in the eastern and western portions of the state.
In Pratt County, harvest is in full swing, according to Lisa, at the Kanza Co-op Association Pratt location. Test weights have been as high as 63 pounds, although the average is about 59 pounds. Yields are hard to gauge, as cutting is still spotty. Wheat is being taken at all the cooperative’s locations.
At the Fowler Equity Exchange, Fowler, harvest has swung into high gear, reports Jason. Before rain showers suspended harvest last week, test weights averaged about 61 pounds per bushel. Now, they average about 58 pounds; yields are averaging between 30 and 50 bushels per acre. As of Sunday, harvest is about 15% complete.
Chris at Farmers Co-op Grain Association, Conway Springs, says harvest has just started, with farmers dodging mudholes to cut wheat on hillsides and sandy soils. Test weights are averaging about 57 pounds per bushel, with yields averaging between 30- and 50-bushels per acre. Some farmers are having 60-plus bushel per acre yields. In the Conway Springs area, harvest is about 10% complete.
At the Right Co-op, Wright, Brenda says about 250,000 bushels has been taken in thus far, with harvest beginning in earnest on Saturday. Test weights are consistently around 60 pounds per bushel, with protein ranging from 8.3-14.5%.
Bart George at Cargill AgHorizons, Salina, reports about 150,000 bushels of wheat were taken in over the weekend. Harvesting is spotty due to last week’s rain showers, but George says farmers north of Salina are cutting. Test weights are in the upper 50s and low 60s, with protein ranging from 9-10%.
Kansas Wheat Commissioner Ron Suppes, Dighton, says he will begin harvesting in Finney County on Monday. There is no harvest going on in Scott and Lane counties, Suppes says, although sporadic harvest is occurring near Garden City.
Kansas Association of Wheat Growers vice president Paul Penner began cutting for a neighbor Saturday. He reports 60-plus bushel yields, with test weights averaging more than 61 pounds per bushel. A hail storm last week has reduced yield potential somewhat. With harvest just getting underway, Penner believes yields in Marion County could be above average.
The 2008 Harvest Salute to Producers is brought to you by Kansas Wheat in conjunction with sponsors Kansas City Board of Trade, DeBruce Grain and the Kansas Grain and Feed Association.
Conventional crops should NOT compete for biofuel production, they are NOT the best source ! The very best source of biofuel is from Prairie Grass in the USA. Its production will compete for acreage of 'investment' in relation to 'food and feed crop' production, but, shouldn't.
HOWEVER and especially.
The 'type' of land needed for Prairie Grass Production doesn't even have to compete with the lands needed for conventional crop production. There is absolutely NO REASON for biofuels to disaffect food production or food prices ! These are NOT genetically altered or 'designer crops' either !
Back to the future: Prairie grasses emerge as rich energy source (click here)
Mixtures of grasses make best source of biofuel
...The beauty of mixed prairie grasses, say the researchers, is that, unlike corn, they can grow in old farmland or in marginal, degraded lands with little or no application of water or fertilizers. The challenge is finding enough such land....
THESE GRASSES are able to thrive in drought conditions.
Biofuels from Switchgrass: Greener Energy Pastures (click here)
-Test plots of switchgrass at Auburn University have produced up to 15 tons of dry biomass per acre, and five- year yields average 11.5 tons—enough to make 1,150 gallons of ethanol per acre each year.
-Many farmers are already experienced at raising switchgrass for forage or to protect soil from erosion. Besides showing great promise for energy production, switchgrass also restores vital organic nutrients to farmed-out soils.
-Switchgrass can be cut and baled with standard farming equipment.
-Switchgrass offers excellent habitat for a wide variety of birds and small mammals.
Erosion control can be realized by INVESTING in Priarie Grass as a harvestable crop along with regular crops. Grasses protect from erosion far better than simple farmland. A change in the way farmers view 'land use' has to be realized. This is not a new concept, simply an under-utalized one. Harvesting 'protective' grass embankments can be an applied technology which would allow for reducing sediment in these areas as well.
Cross breeding, not genetic engineering, some of these grasses will allow a 'high yield 'Prairie/Switchgrass' production in areas now underutilized or even 'thought about' as crop production or as a NEW farm income. Research needs to be conducted and monies need to be appropriated by a newly elected President that BELIEVES change in the way America applies knowledge can lead our nation back to greatness.
Flood recovery turns to erosion; Some farmers' grass waterways crucial in saving their crops (click here)
By Lyn Jerde, Daily Register
No one has to sell Cambria-area farmer Carl Stiemsma on the benefits of grass waterways in crop fields.
"I've got a lot of them," he said, "and I think I might get some more."
The recent Columbia County deluges were a textbook example of what some people colloquially call a "gully-washer."
But, if Stiemsma had planted his waterways in crops, instead of in soil-saving grasses, those crops and the soil in which they were planted would have been swept away onto roadways or neighboring fields. And, the yield in his fields — corn, soybeans, green beans, wheat and other crops — would have been drastically reduced.
Stiemsma has utilized grass waterways since the 1970s, but he's considering placing a call to the Columbia County Land and Water Conservation Department to help build news ones and replace old ones that, encrusted with several years' accumulation of sediment, have become less effective.
Kurt Calkins, director of the land and water conservation department, said landowners are now being strongly encouraged to get in touch with his department, which is offering help for farmers wishing to implement erosion-control practices....
