Harvest has been going very well and in many areas crop yields have been better than anticipated.

With about 90 per cent of the crop in the bin, the 2006 harvest is well ahead of the five-year (2001-05) average of 44 per cent combined, and 22 per cent lying in the swath, or ready to straight combine.

Cory Bali of Louis Dreyfus Canada Ltd. near Glenavon, says that despite the hot, dry summer, most crops did surprisingly well.

Most producers seem pleased with their yields and the grades for nearly all crops taken off thus far are good, he says.

Spring wheat in that area, particularly that sown early, yielded slightly above average and nearly all will be graded #1 and #2. There are reports of 50 bushel to the acre fields, with the average estimated at 35-38 bushels.

Barley was expected to be lightweight due to excessive heat, but samples to date are nice and heavy, he says, and yields are thought to have averaged 60-70 bushels.

The heat during the flowering stage did affect pea crops. Producers hoping to reap 35-40 bushels per acre more likely found yields were about 30 bushels.

Many were more pleased with their oat crops, which though they will grade #2, might have attained a 75-80 bushel average.

Canola appears to have produced 10 or 15 per cent above normal for this area, with some fields pushing 45 bushels to the acre. Thirty bushels is the likely average for canola.

About half of the flax has been combined, with yields in the 25-33 bushel range.

“Considering the (lack of) moisture and (excessive) heat, the crop was better than many expected,” Bali says. “Despite relatively low pricing, there is real cause for optimism,” he says.

Around Kipling, yields were somewhat lower.

Dennis Presniak of Paterson Grain Co., says the crop is average or a bit below average. It has been, however, “a good, dry harvest, and, considering the heat, better than anticipated.” He estimates about 80 per cent of the harvest is complete in the district.

Yields varied greatly, Presniak said, using oats as an example, where yields ranged between 30 and 70 bushels, from field to field. He says the average for oats might be in the 40-50 bushel range. Kernels, though are quite thin and not plump, as they should be.

Wheat was about average, 25-35 bushels to the acre, but the bushel weight appears better than expected. Nearly all will grade #1 and #2, with wheat midge and piebald damage the most common degrading factors.Barley bushel weight is also very good, with average yields.

Canola yields were in the 20-30 bushel range and flax is expected to be below the 20 bushel per acre target for this area. Producers are finding they have no storage space for flax, prompting some to leave it in the fields for the time being.

Recent developments in the transportation system have resulted in a shortage of elevator and terminal space during harvest. Movement is slow at this time of year, he says.

Further east, at Langbank, Parrish and Heimbecker’s Dave McKerchar says most farmers have either completed harvest or are on the home stretch.

There, too, space is at a premium as there is little grain movement.

“We’re plugged to the rafters,” McKerchar says.

This year’s crop is “about average, to slightly above average in the Langbank area.

“The best thing is, it’s #1 Red, it’s dry and it’s in the bin,” he says, with reference to the wheat crop. In fact, nearly all is #1 and #2, with a small amount of #3 which can be attributed to heat and the absence of July rains.

Wheat yields generally ranged between 30 and 50 bushels, with the odd report as high as 70 bushels to the acre.

Barley, too, was “all over the board,” from 50-70 bushels and there are very few quality issues with the crop. Malt varieties performed well.

Heat also affected oats, which while many yields were in the 80 bushel range are lightweight. Heavier oats could have taken advantage of a smaller than normal U.S. crop, he says.

Canola is grading #1. Yields varied greatly, from about 25 to as high as 45-50 bushels per acre, with 30-35 being the likely average.

Flax taken off thus far is also #1 and yields are thought to be about 30 bushels to the acre.

Peas yielded 20-30 bushels for the most part and are edible quality as opposed to feed.

“Producers have had what we don’t see very often: a general, run-of-the-mill year,” McKerchar ventures. “An average crop, taken off dry.”

Again, cause for optimism as the 2006 harvest winds down.

Province-wide, eighty-five per cent of the 2006 crop has been harvested, according to Saskatchewan Agriculture and Food’s weekly crop report.

Combining is least advanced in the northeast with 75 per cent of the crop taken off.

Yield estimates to date indicate slightly below average production for 2006. However, crop reporters estimate that over 90 per cent of the spring wheat will fall into the top two grades. Downgrading of crops was the result of wheat midge and weathering, with wind and drought being the main sources of crop damage during the past week.

Seeding of fall crops is under way, and earlier seeded crops have emerged. The biggest factor limiting seeding of fall crops is lack of moisture. Fall field work is also being hampered by dry soil conditions.

Michael Kearns