Janel: In high demand

East of Dodge City, Kansas–We have been staying busy. All of our combines are now in Kansas and are finding plenty of dry wheat to cut. Farmers are calling me wanting their wheat cut. This is when I wish I had more combines. Wheat is ready all across the state of Kansas. Being in high demand is great but stressful too. I have a big passionate heart about harvest and want to get everyone’s wheat cut as soon as possible.

Kansas had a cool and wet spring and the wheat evidently liked it. Here east of Dodge City the wheat is making 80 to 100 bushels per acre and the test weights have been 61 to 64 pounds per bushel. This is the best wheat crop I’ve ever cut here. High yields and high quality wheat is keeping us busy all day long. The yields are well above average here no doubt about it. When we first arrived the straw was a little green yet. Fungicide applications keep the plants healthy and alive and ripe wheat can have green stems due to it. Also, fungicide keeps away disease and rust. Applying nitrogen improves protein levels. There isn’t a weed, cheat grass or rye in the fields I’m cutting. I love cutting clean wheat. Having an outstanding wheat crop usually depends on the farmer and how well they take care of the land. Some do such an outstanding job of farming and it shows.

Recent triple digit temperatures and dry weather helps the harvest along. I just keep saying rain, rain stay away. I want to keep on cutting wheat without any more weather delays. We’ve had way too many during the first month of harvest. The ten day forecast has highs in the eighties and some chances of rain. I just want to keep on cutting wheat and get moved out to western Kansas before too long.

Janel Schemper can be reached at janel@allaboardharvest.com.

All Aboard Wheat Harvest is sponsored by Case IH, Unverferth Manufacturing Co., Inc., BASF, Oklahoma Baptist Homes for Children, Gleaner, ITC, Westbred, Huskie, Western Equipment, US Custom Harvesters, and High Plains Journal.   

Cutting wheat east of Dodge City and a storm is all of the sudden building. We got some rain.

I am busy fueling the combine and on a business call. (Photo by Carlene Schemper.)

I am going to unload on the truck. (Photo by Carlene Schemper.)

My dad and I cutting wheat east of Dodge City, Kansas. (Photo by Carlene Schemper.)

I am checking out the header. (Photo by Carlene Schemper.)

A Kansas wheat harvest sunset.

Mama and baby deer in the field.

I love this view of harvesting.

Wheat at Pratt.

This was at Frederick, Oklahoma. I was cleaning out my MacDon header and a rat was right there. I got surprised and naturally screamed like a little girl, laugh out loud.

Cutting wheat at Pratt.

Harvesting wheat at Pratt.

Harvesting wheat east of Dodge City. We couldn’t cut this field last year because it was under water. I think we cut one load and got stuck so we had to leave it alone. This year it was dry so we cut it all!

A full strawberry moon on June 24. It was beautiful.

On this night (6/24/21) there was a full strawberry moon. It was the first full moon of the summer.  It was also a supermoon, which occurs when the moon is at its closest point to Earth in its orbit, also known as perigee. In turn, the moon will look slightly bigger and brighter since it’s closer to the Earth than usual. June’s strawberry moon is the second and last supermoon of the year. It was quite the sight on this wheat harvesting night.

Cutting wheat at Pratt. I love my combine shadow.

This is my favorite time of day.

Cutting east of Dodge City.

The day we moved from Pratt to east of Dodge City it was triple digits again, 105 degrees F. I had just unloaded the tractor grain cart and was sweaty.

So sweaty and dirty but it’s okay.

Cutting wheat at Pratt.

 

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