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Harvest Update 2022

Another growing season is now complete. This year sure brought some ups and downs starting with a cool wet spring and some devastating floods for our neighbors up north of the Montana line. This resulted in a slow start for sugar beets and corn but the hot weather this summer provided more than enough heat units to make up the difference. Before we knew it the corn was tall, the beets were big, the barley was harvested, and the beans were starting to ripe.

The barley was the first thing to come in. It has been reported that yields were down overall with the area averaging about 110 bushel per acre. The extra moisture we received caused higher incidents of disease and sprouts in the barley this year. Beans had some perfect weather conditions to finish this fall. There were no frozen beans and on average bean yields ranged from about 25 to 28 bags per acre depending on the variety. Sugar beets did well overall considering the cool wet spring with an average yield of 27.5 ton per acre and 18% sugar. There were no significant diseases or insect issues that were observed in sugar beets this growing season. Grain corn, in many cases, is still standing in the fields but currently yields are averaging about 190 to 200 bushel per acre. This year’s hay crop turned out very good and for those that have hay to sell should be very happy as hay prices are still hanging high at about $250 a ton on average.

This year was nothing spectacular and for many not even a good year. We struggled with increasing costs in fuel and equipment parts, that is if you could even get the parts you needed. The local farming community suffered some significant losses this year as we were forced to say goodbye to some incredible individuals. While others decided this was a good year to retire and attempt to pass the reins along in the hope that their ground and equipment will continue to be utilized to fulfill someone’s farming dream. However, with all the struggles we faced this past season we can only pause for a moment to take a deep breath, because now is the time we need to look toward the near future to begin planning and preparing for next season’s crop and subsequently the next set of issues that are likely to arise. But farmers are tough and have survived for many a generation and they will continue to hold strong and feed the mass and make this big beautiful world turn the way it should.

– Austen Samet-Brown