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Recent rains didn’t help wheat crop for Kansas farmer who expects poor yields

A Central-Kansas farmer says recent rain events were too little too late for his wheat crop.

Keith Miller of Barton County tells Brownfield harvest should start this week and isn’t expecting bumper crop because of persistent drought. “The wheat doesn’t look too bad for what it’s been through.  It’s really suffered.  The biggest headache we’re going to have is a lot of it is only 8 to 10 inches high and it’s not going to be fun to cut.” 

Even though his area transitioned from extreme drouth in April to moderate drought in June, Miller says the relief won’t have much of an impact on yields. “It’s going to be just good enough to cut.  I’m not going to abandon any. Some of it’s not going to make very good.  There is going to be a lot of 10-to-15-bushel wheat.  If it’s summer-fall ground where it has some subsoil moisture, it’s going to make in the 30s or 40s.”  

He says wheat is typically waist high and average yields are in the 50s.

USDA says winter wheat conditions are 41 percent poor-to-very poor.