Northeast Colorado: As conditions allowed, we started funneling equipment into Colorado while some of us finished up in Kansas. The wet conditions have gradually turned off though. There were a few showers, as one expects on the Front Range, in the summer. The crew was able to move around to dry wheat, so, thankfully, down time was minimal.

Something that has plagued north eastern Colorado over the recent years is a pest called sawfly. I talked about it in detail on a post several years ago, but a brief synopsis is that the damage caused by larvae, near the base of

Western Kansas: The crew in western Kansas had about a day and a half off after the rain from the last post. Sitting was tough, but it did fall on the Fourth of July, so I guess it was divine timing for a break for the crew in that area.

They were back in the field Monday afternoon and we had a solid evening of cutting. The next day we were back at it. We were pushing moisture early on, but things soon dried out. The going was a bit slow due to lodged wheat and high yields. This part of

Western Kansas: All the crews were cutting and that was a beautiful thing after all the weather delays.

At this point, stress levels were increasing rapidly. Jobs further north were very close to ready with the hot, dry weather in that region. We still had many acres left to cover on our current jobs due to the rain delays. Harvesters plan a run to meet their obligations to the farmers who incorporate us into their operations. We need them and they need us and we plan a run to be there accordingly. It is very difficult when you can see events

Western Kansas: Due to weather and trying to compensate for that with crew positioning, I have been running a machine more this summer than in a long time. It has been a fun change of pace. I really enjoy being in the field working with Ryan and the crew. I recently wrote this on my social media page at "Under the Flyover Sky" to offer encouragement to those who work with their significant other. It is in quotes below, and I thought maybe some of you could relate.

"I was called up to help so had to take a few refresher

Southeastern Colorado: There was a Ken Burns documentary on the Dust Bowl on PBS a few years back. They described this part of the world as “no man’s land.” It is a sparsely populated part of the country where only the toughest survive. Extreme weather conditions can make for a feast or famine yield situation depending on which side the pendulum swings. With all that being said, it is absolutely one of my favorite stops of the run.

Montana is known as big sky country and that is an accurate description. However, I would argue southeastern Colorado is equally so. I

Southeast Colorado: Hi everyone. This harvest has perhaps moved into the position of “craziest one ever” due to weather. I’ve been a little bit of here, there and everywhere lately. That includes in a combine. As a result, I’ve gotten terribly behind so the next few posts will hopefully get you up to speed on some of the happenings of the team.

We headed out to southeast Colorado with the idea that I would probably be in a machine. However, the weather initially didn’t cooperate, so that gave us a few extra days of flexibility to play with our farm family’s

Oklahoma–Once the rain cleared up in Texas, we had a stretch of strong cutting conditions. It was truly a time of eat, sleep, cut, repeat for the crew. Unseasonably warm temperatures in the 100s, in mid-June, stretched across the plains causing wheat to ripen quickly across a wide region. As a result, we had to split our crew three ways. Thankfully, the experience of the team allowed us to do so and we were able to make our stops. Yields in northern Oklahoma were in the 50-bushel per acre range with test weights hovering around 61 to 62 pounds.

A highlight

Please welcome, to the AAWH blog, Farris Brothers Inc., a custom harvesting firm from Edson, Kansas. The crew harvests from southern Oklahoma to northern Montana each summer before returning home for fall harvest.

I recently caught up with Rick at a field on the corner of 183 highway in west central Oklahoma. The field was slightly broken up, so one machine was running in the northeast quadrant while the other two worked the southwest side of the field. The grain cart picked up machines as they filled. Heat waves could be seen coming from the red Case IH machines as they

Oklahoma: The weather in Texas caused harvest to last long enough that the kids and I finally had to pull the plug on our time with southern harvest. I typically try to time my trip back home about the same time each season to intercept mail and do whatever else needs to be done at the home or farm. It's a luxury of living in the middle of the run.

Other crew members had just moved up to our west central stop in Oklahoma. We swung by the field to deliver a late lunch of fast food burgers and shakes since

Northern Texas: As promised, I am sprinkling some other custom harvesters into my posts this summer. I know you will enjoy learning more about other teams.

My first AAWH guest is Johnson Harvesting, of Evansville, Minnesota. They are celebrating their 61st season of custom harvesting. With that kind of longevity, there is a good chance that you’ve seen their fleet of matching blue Kenworth trucks if you are out and about during harvest time in the Great Plains region.

Johnson Harvesting is owned by Shawn and Lance Johnson. The brothers split duties. Lance operates the farming operation. Shawn, with his wife Rachel