MGGA Weekly Crop Condition Survey - July 2017



July 5, 2017

Mitch Konen - Teton County

Happy Birthday America! Just wish we were all more united. Crops are doing well even with the advent of the heat. Precipitation from above is scarce and scary all at the same time. Did receive enough to settle the dust for about an hour. Haying is all done on my farm, others are getting it wrapped up. A lot of second round irrigation has occurred already and I am just getting started again. Deliveries seem to just rotate from one to another in an orderly fashion so no rationing has occurred this year. Diverse crops and rotations make a lot of difference. Pishkun reservoir is down to the fish grates so the water is coming straight thru this reservoir from Gibson. Makes for a little less water for pressure and less flow in the canal for deliveries but seems to be adequate for now. Would expect rationing to be implemented soon. The good thing is that Gibson reservoir is full yet. Canola, peas and garbs are all flowering as well as the spring wheat. Lots of colors on the Greenfields bench this year. Soybeans are a little slow but soon to take off with this heat. Corn is knee high or better. Dryland winter wheat is starting to turn already but not sure if it is due to maturity, might be dry. Have a safe 4th and keep the water close.

Moisture Conditions: Good
Precipitation the Past Week: .01-.03
Winter Wheat: Good; Turning
Spring Wheat: Excellent; Heading
Barley: Excellent; Heading
Other Crops: Canola - flowering as are the other pulses
Problems in the Field: Wild oats
When will you begin harvest? August

Craig Henke - Liberty County

Looks like hot and dry. Will fry late seeded spring crops. Busy irrigating, lots of water in Marias river. Harvest a few weeks away.

Moisture Conditions: Fair
Precipitation the Past Week: 0
Winter Wheat: Fair; Soft dough; 30 (bu/A)
Spring Wheat: Fair; Turning; 30 (bu/A)
Other Crops: Lentils and chickpeas blooming for few weeks

Greg Mathews - Judith Basin County

It has been a hard week on the wheat with the dry weather, only got .02 rain. The spring crop continues to hold on, the only blessing is the cool temps. Haying is finishing up and should be done by the 4th. Hope everybody has a great 4th.

Moisture Conditions: Fair
Precipitation the Past Week: .02
Winter Wheat: Fair; Turning; 40 (bu/A)
Barley: Good; Filling; 50 (bu/A)
Other Crops: Peas are done flowering
When will you begin harvest? July 20?

Alex Smith - Big Horn County

Hot and dry and the next weeks forecast is the same. A couple of small thunderstorms in the area but not any significant rain. Clouds gather but nothing comes out. WW is essentially made. I see a few WW fields that could harvest in a week or so but most are later.

Moisture Conditions: Poor
Precipitation the Past Week: .1
Winter Wheat: Excellent; Turning; 60 (bu/A)
Spring Wheat: Fair; Filling; 30 (bu/A)
Barley: Fair; Filling; 40 (bu/A)
Other Crops: Dryland alfalfa yields were good and had great early spring moisture.

 

July 11, 2017

Mitch Konen - Teton County

She is a hot one on the Greenfields these days. The only comfort is if you are lucky enough to find someone's end gun on a pivot sprinkling across the road. Feels really good on the bike. But now you are hot and wet. Most all sprinklers are running and the irrigation is going strong. Just finished up flooding the barley and canola again and probably will have to hit the canola again as it is flowering strong. Some barley is starting to turn already with this heat and is filling. Most of the hay is up and gathered. Spring wheat is flowering well. A few fires around in the hay fields. Stay safe out there.

Moisture Conditions: Good
Precipitation the Past Week: .01
Winter Wheat: Good; Filling
Spring Wheat: Excellent; Heading
Barley: Excellent; Filling
Other Crops: Canola - flowering brightly yellow
Problems in the Field: Cereal leaf beetles; wild oats
When will you begin harvest? August

Craig Henke - Liberty County

Cooler this morning with a shower last night. Harvest season has begun and we are busy swathing lentils. Some cutting winter wheat and by next week looks like a lot is ready. Things are turning and burning fast with 100 degree days. Chickpeas are doing great in this hot weather, pods are filling good.

Moisture Conditions: Fair
Precipitation the Past Week: 2/10
Winter Wheat: Good; Ripe; 30 (bu/A)
Spring Wheat: Fair; Soft dough; 30 (bu/A)
Other Crops: Chickpeas look great yet, filling pods nicely

Todd Hansen - Hill County

Holy HOT. Been 90+ since July 1 and no end in sight. We are fortunate. We will have a winter wheat crop. I just don't have any idea what to expect from the spring crops. Last rain was June 17th at .07. But I know the guys in the east are worse off. By the time this is read we will probably be cutting. Have a safe one.

Precipitation the Past Week: Haha

Greg Mathews - Judith Basin County

Been another hot week. Haying is finishing up and harvest is about a week away, the earliest can remember. Here at home should start about the 20th. Looks like everything is turning at once and should be a busy time. Grass is getting brittle and regrowth isn't happening. Sprayed the summer fallow again this past week.

Moisture Conditions: Fair
Precipitation the Past Week: .19
Winter Wheat: Fair; Hard dough; 50 (bu/A)
Barley: Good; Turning; 50 (bu/A)
Other Crops: Peas are turning and only flowered for 2 weeks
When will you begin harvest? On or before the 20th

Robert Bold - Fergus County

Well, it looks like the cure to low wheat prices is low production. Harvest has started east of here with 62 lb test weight and 14 pro winter wheat. No news on yields. Our winter wheat is soft to hard dough. I have no idea what is keeping the spring wheat looking as good as it is. The spring wheat is headed and filling. The pulse crop yields are up in the air. Heat is not really their friend. Barley yields are going to be very predictable--low. Since May 1st to July 1st, we have received 14.7% of average moisture. Zero % of average for July to date. May & June are our wettest months with nearly 50% of our annual precipitation during that time frame. Most years we are scrambling to get the 3 chem fallow pass completed before harvest. This year very little has been sprayed the second pass and the fields are still clean.

Moisture Conditions: Poor
Precipitation the Past Week: None
Winter Wheat: Fair; Soft dough
Spring Wheat: Poor; Filling
Barley: Fair; Filling
Other Crops: Peas filling and beginning to turn.

Terry Angvick - Sheridan County

Nothing to report. Still no rain and high temps are putting a big hurt to all crops. Looks like forecast is for more high temps and no precipitation. We were certainly due, and have been here before! Good news is that prices are rising and there is still some unpriced old crop in the bins. Depending upon what level of crop insurance was chosen, that and FSA payments should ease the sting.

Moisture Conditions: Poor
Precipitation the Past Week: None
Winter Wheat: Not Seeded
Spring Wheat: Poor; Heading; 10 (bu/A)
Barley: Not Seeded
Other Crops: Peas and lentils are very thin and short. Peas are done be flowering and look to be very poor yields. Lentils are almost done flowering and also poor yields. They will be difficult to harvest as are very short. Some are attempting to hay some of the pea fields as there is very little hay in this area.Problems in the Field: Fields that guys opted to skip spraying have some wild oat issues. Also some kochia
When will you begin harvest? I am thinking two weeks to the peas.

Kurt Voss - McCone & Dawson County

Almost all the winter wheat in the area was put up for hay as forage and hay crops are very poor. Peas are just starting to be harvested with below average to poor yields expected. Spring wheat is starting to turn. Expected yields 25 at best and poorer crop likely won't be harvested. Weather conditions to be extremely hot 90's and 100's all last week and projected this next week with no precipitation. Drought appears to be intensifying.

Moisture Conditions: Poor
Precipitation the Past Week: None
Winter Wheat: Ripe
Spring Wheat: Poor; Turning; 10 (bu/A)
When will you begin harvest? Pea harvest will start in about a week. Spring wheat is just starting to turn but everything is drying out fast.

Alex Smith - Big Horn County

I heard a few WW fields are harvested but most are several more days out. With temps 90-102 things are changing very fast. Forecast for next week the same. Spring crops are suffering badly. Not very nice if you have to work outside on maintenance.

Moisture Conditions: Poor
Precipitation the Past Week: .2
Winter Wheat: Excellent; Ripe; 60 (bu/A)
Spring Wheat: Poor; Turning; 30 (bu/A)
Barley: Fair; Turning; 40 (bu/A)
When will you begin harvest? WW now

 

July 18, 2017

Mitch Konen - Teton County

Holy heat wave Batman, is it hot. This oppressive heat is taking its toll on the crops and the surrounding prairie. The grass crunches with every step taken. Be prepared and careful out there with the onset of harvest. The crops are maturing rapidly with each successive day and degree of temperature. Most of the irrigating has been completed here on the bench. There is still a few pivots going on some later seeded crops and some pulses. My canola is still blooming so will have to turn the water on it again by the end of the week, this will be the third time for the flood while the pivot is still running on the remainder. Was a good week to do some marketing as well as it is just another item that needs to be managed along with everything else. Sounds like the water will hold out well into September if all goes well. Already starting to make plans for the 2018 crop year. A few combines rolling in the outlying dryland areas. Harvest is upon us, have a safe and bountiful one.

Moisture Conditions: Fair
Precipitation the Past Week: .00 - .2
Winter Wheat: Good; Ripe;
Spring Wheat: Excellent; Filling\
Barley: Excellent; Turning
Other Crops: Canola - still flowering but waning; Others - peas are turning, chickpeas are filling, soybeans are looking for water, corn is reaching for the sky and looking for water
Problems in the Field: Wheat midges are detectable; wild oats, kochia, lambsquarter, milk weed; rust in the spring wheat
When will you begin harvest? Aug 10

Greg Mathews - Judith Basin County

The heat wave continues and getting very tired of it. The other night the temps went from 59 to 80 in less than twenty minutes. Got a teaser of showers last week .10, .02, .07, .01. Only good thing was the clean air afterwards. Harvest started Wednesday in Moccasin and north of Moore area. Will be going strong next week. North of Moccasin saw a narrow hail storm, damage was severe. Have a safe harvest.

Moisture Conditions: Poor
Precipitation the Past Week: .20
Winter Wheat: Fair; Hard dough; 40 (bu/A)
Barley: Fair; Hard dough; 40 (bu/A)
Other Crops: Peas look good with 4 to 7 peas per pod, probably the only crop to look forward to harvesting
When will you begin harvest? Next week

Robert Bold - Fergus County

Well another dry week. Makes for good harvest weather. I see lots of combines running west of here. East of here the yields are off considerably. There is talk of no combines in the fields at all. Either the crop has been hayed or will be grazed. Crop insurance and PLC payments appear to be the main income for grain producers. My hat is off to MGGA and NAWG for their years of continual efforts to build and maintain the safety nets currently in place. I know for a fact it is a constant ongoing effort to maintain and develop income security for Montana's grain producers. It appears we will be harvesting peas first. Our winter wheat is ripening so unevenly from the crop injury from Bayer herbicide, it will later.

Moisture Conditions: Poor
Precipitation the Past Week: .5 inch
Winter Wheat: Fair; Ripe
Spring Wheat: Fair; Soft dough
Barley: Fair; Filling
When will you begin harvest? By the end of this week.

Matt Flikkema - Gallatin County

Things are progressing nicely here in South West Montana, most of the crops are looking good. Winter wheat harvest is about a week away in the Three Forks area and most of the spring crops are all green yet. I know of one operation that has harvested some winter barley (feed), did over 100 bu/ac dryland on the field that didn't winter kill, another field didn't survive winter so don't know if this is the wave of the future.

Moisture Conditions: Good
Precipitation the Past Week: None
Winter Wheat: Excellent; Hard dough; 60 (bu/A)
Spring Wheat: Excellent; Filling; 100 (bu/A)
Barley: Excellent; Filling; 100 (bu/A)
Other Crops: Canola looks great
Problems in the Field: Kochia
When will you begin harvest? This week

Alex Smith - Big Horn County

Several evening showers slowing WW harvest. .1 to .4 each time. I have no WW so my harvest is 2 weeks away. Hot to 105. First time I can remember weather alerts because of heat danger. Just servicing augers and auger tractors, setting up trucks and sprayer for possible fire protection. Cutting some 2nd cutting alfalfa in low spots. Even though dry, its living on big spring rains and moisture deep down.

Moisture Conditions: Poor
Precipitation the Past Week: .6
Winter Wheat: Excellent; Ripe; 60 (bu/A)
Spring Wheat: Poor; Turning; 30 (bu/A)
Barley: Fair; Turning; 40 (bu/A)
Problems in the Field: Some prickly lettuce showing up in the crop. Poor kill this spring due to cold preplant conditions.

 

July 25, 2017

Mitch Konen - Teton County

Another hot week on the bench. One thing about the heat, the mosquitoes don't like it either. But at sundown and sunup they are terrible. Freezeout lake to the west of me is ripe with algae and moss, and with a west wind will cover the smell of the canola and dill fields. Irrigation is pretty much wrapped up for 2017 crops. A little hay may yet need to be irrigated. Now it is time to get into harvest gear and ready the equipment. Barley is a week to two weeks away yet, then spring wheat, then canola. The neighbors' corn and soybeans are really taking off in this heat, along with that, requires more irrigation water. Really volatile markets with crop conditions and weather changing the direction every minute. Have a safe and bountiful harvest.

Moisture Conditions: Fair
Precipitation the Past Week: nada
Winter Wheat: Good; harvested
Spring Wheat: Excellent; Filling; expected 70 bu/A
Barley: Excellent; Soft dough; expected 100 bu/A
Other Crops: Canola - filling pods as flowering has subsided
Problems in field: flea beetles, cereal leaf beetle; wild oats, kochia, lambsquarter; rust in spring wheat
When will you begin harvest: Aug 10

Robert Bold - Fergus County

Harvest is in full swing. So are field fires--one every other day or so. Winter wheat harvest is over half over. Yields are a lot lower than the last 3 harvests. Even with the heat and low growing season moisture the protein is not what was expected. Mostly 10.5%. 

Hearing all the bad news from the Jordan fires, it makes you feel for all those people. Crop insurance sure helps the grain producer. But when fire takes everything like your home and livestock you never really recover.

Moisture Conditions: Poor
Precipitation the Past Week: none
Spring Wheat: Fair; Hard dough
Barley: Fair; Hard dough
Other Crops: Will be harvesting peas this week.

Terry Angvick - Sheridan County

Still no rain to speak. Unreal! Early harvest starting on peas and some lentils. For peas, yields range from 10-20 bu/ac. Really, with lack of rain the whole growing season, it's amazing to see yields at that level. The seeds are smaller than normal, but test weights are in the low 60s. Have heard of some early lentils in the 6-12 bu range. They are very short, so harvest is a drag the ground process. Same with peas. No durum cut yet.

Moisture Conditions: Poor
Precipitation the Past Week: None
Winter Wheat: Not Seeded
Spring Wheat: Fair; Soft Dough; 10 (bu/A)
Barley: Not Seeded
Other Crops: See above
Problems in the Field: Kochia peeking through in areas. Wild oats scattered. See quite a bit of hawksbeard, and it will get worse as a lot of fields were not sprayed.
When will you begin harvest? Harvesting peas now. Mid-teens for yield. They are green peas. Color is good but seeds are small.

Michelle Erickson-Jones - Northern Yellowstone, Eastern Stillwater, Southern Golden Valley County

Harvest has been rolling for about a week now in this area. Excellent yields and test weight. Not as much protein as most people (including myself) were hoping for. Many are struggling to get to 11.5 on the winter wheat. Once the winter wheat is harvested we'll keep rolling into the barley. It is ripening fast. The heat probably isn't doing it any favors but it still looks good. So far we are still above average moisture for the year however June was either below average or right at average - July has been hot and dry - so we'll be looking for rain soon. There's a 4+ inch difference between our rainfall total and the totals they have just 10 miles away to the north and east .... so all and all we've been fortunate in the moisture department. That line is also the drought line on the drought monitor maps.

Moisture Conditions: Fair
Precipitation the Past Week: 0.0
Winter Wheat: Excellent; Ripe; 50 (bu/A)
Spring Wheat: Fair; Soft dough
Barley: Excellent; Hard dough
Other Crops: Sunflowers: Excellent/Good
When will you begin harvest? Currently harvesting