Harvest heads up

[craig]

Just finished combining first field of feed barley and ran a sample of winterwheat. Wanted to give a heads up because many of you are likely going to find the same thing we did. We did combine on the tough side because we wanted to seed back winter wheat on the barley stubble and we did combine before the dessication had a chance to have it's full effect. Regardless moisture was jumping all over the map as we combined which related to the amount of green seeds in the sample. Whether we are in wheat or barley there are a number of late green tillers sitting down in the canopy. These are part of a plants whose main tillers border on over ripe. Dessication did seem to have some impact but it remains to be seen how these tillers can absord roundup with no or little leaves. We have chosen to go with higher water volumes and in some fields higher rates. The winter wheat sample tested dry yet I would suggest had 5 to 10 % green kernals. Now in a dilemma harvest and try to shrink the green on aeration or wait and hope they shrivel enough they blow out the back of the combine. On a lot of crops waiting may put the main part of the crop into an over ripe position. I would suggest that for those of you who wait for the crop to get very ripe before swathing may find the crop will take extra time to cure out and a better strategy would be to swath earlier and take your chances The message is that what works most years might not this year. You need to be looking at your crop in the field not driving by from the road. I have never seen crops growing so actively at this time of the year. They need to be killed by swathing dessication or a hard frost. Have yet to start swathing canola. I have found everything from almost 80% colour change to pods that ar still mushy basically beside each other. Stakes are high as to whether we swath at say 30% colour change or wait for some of that later growth. Not sure how the trade will handle a huge crop with high levels of green seed.

[grassfarmer]

Grass and crops are unbelievebly green in my area - I just finished packing a large pile of silage bought in from my Hutterite neighbors. Apart from hail damage the amount of second growth barley and grass green canola was amazing. I don't think there will be much grain coming out of this area, a lot will be cattle feed. Then again I live on the extreme western fringe (some would say the lunatic fringe) of the grain belt.
Most of our grass is about the maturity stage usually seen July 1st not September 1st.