Spring Wheat Tour 2016
Day 1 Averages 43.1 BPA
OMAHA (DTN) -- The first day of sampling on the 2016 Hard Spring Wheat and Durum Tour generated a 43.1 bushels per acre average yield estimate.
Samples were taken from 173 spring wheat fields and four durum fields as scouts spread out Tuesday across the southern and eastern counties of North Dakota, with one route dipping down into South Dakota.
In 2015, scouts ended with an average yield of 51.1 bpa on day one.
Tour organizer and Wheat Quality Council President Ben Handcock's route explored the northernmost counties of South Dakota, where wheat fields were sometimes hard to find among the many corn and soybean fields. By midday, the car had found an average spring wheat potential yield of 47 bpa, on par with reports from other routes, Handcock said. His car's lowest yielding field was estimated at 30 bpa and the highest of the route hit 58 bpa.
Yields dropped as his route wound its way into more western regions of North Dakota, Handcock added.
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"We've seen no disease or insects," he added. "It was clearly dry in some places, but right now moisture looks pretty adequate." Most of the wheat in South Dakota was ready to harvest, and all of the winter wheat fields they saw were already combined, he added.
According to USDA's most recent crop progress report, as of July 24, South Dakota's winter wheat crop was 82% harvested and its spring wheat was already 20% harvested, well ahead of the five-year averages. The state's spring wheat crop was rated 41% in good to excellent condition.
Tim Luken, manager of Oahe Grain Corp. in Onida, South Dakota, told DTN on July 21 that in his area "with the 111 degree temps we had the day prior, we saw a big start to the spring wheat harvest." As of July 24, Luken said quality was excellent and yields were close to 40 bpa.
Dan Wogsland, executive director of the North Dakota Grain Growers Association said he was on a route that covered central North Dakota on Tuesday. That route's worst field of the day was in the Tuttle, North Dakota, area where hail had all but destroyed the field, leaving it with a yield of 17 bpa. In Monday's crop progress report, North Dakota NASS reported that hail in the west and south-central parts of the state caused some damage to crops during the week ending July 24.
Wogsland said the best field his scouts saw was in Colgate, North Dakota, which showed a potential yield of 62 bpa. "Our group overall has seen very good quality with no disease pressure or sign of bugs," he added. "State yields could be down from last year and with our route nearly finished for the day, we would call our average at 48 bpa."
North Dakota's wheat is also well ahead of the average pace of development. Thirteen percent of the state's winter wheat crop is harvested, and spring wheat is 72% coloring. The state's winter wheat was rated 72% in good to excellent condition and spring was rated 71% in good to excellent condition. Durum wheat condition rated 87% good to excellent and was 95% headed with 52% of the durum coloring.
Check this page Wednesday evening for more from the spring wheat tour.
Mary Kennedy can be reached at mary.kennedy@dtn.com
Follow her on Twitter @MaryCKenn
Emily Unglesbee can be reached at Emily.unglesbee@dtn.com
Follow her on Twitter @Emily_Unglesbee
(CZ)
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