Prolonged drought lowers expectations for Kansas wheat harvest

WICHITA, Kan. (KWCH) -The start of wheat harvest is days away for parts of Kansas, but because of the prolonged drought across the state, some farmers may have less what to cut.

This year’s harvest comes as prices soar because of the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine. Lower yields mean missing out on a lot of money.

The wheat in south central Kansas is turning from green to gold, meaning summer harvest is nearly her. Overall, Kansas will likely see a significant decrease in yields, but high commodity prices still have farmers hopeful.

Harvey County farmer Steve McCloud said months of prolonged drought has kept the crop from growing to its full potential. Torrential rain accompanying recent storms didn’t come soon enough to drastically change the situation.

Also, too much rain could cause issues like disease and farmers need fields to dry out soon so they can begin harvesting.

“We had a dry winter and a dry spring, which limited its growth,” McCloud said.

Kansas Wheat Research and Operations Vice President Aaron Harries predicts Kansas will harvest 100 million fewer bushels than last year.

‘For reference if you took what USDA (US Department of Agriculture) suggests for harvesting bushels in Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas, and added those up, it’s still less than the total of what Kansas alone harvested last year.

Geography plays a significant role as Western Kansas went months without much measurable rain. But in Harvey County, McCloud said he doesn’t expect too much of a yield reduction. He said the quality of this year’s crop will be spotty. While many plants are looking strong, on others, there are clear signs of disease on some leaves.

These issues come as commodity prices are higher than usual, above $10 each bushel. McCloud said even with commodity prices high, he hopes it’s enough to offset higher input costs caused by inflation.

‘Fertilizer, chemicals, herbicides, pesticides, those kinds of things (are) a tremendous factor in terms of profitability of farms and farmers,” McCloud said.

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