Harvest USA Report

The talk lately has been the drought and co-host David Woodruff has Shawn Thacker on the line talking about the precipitation they received recently.
 
So we're talking to Shawn Thacker, Burdette, Alberta. How much rain did you get at home? 
 
"Over the weekend here we're pushing about 2.2 inches now and it's still raining pretty good. I'm just in the office and it's basically sheets of rain coming across through the yard."
 
How are crops looking there at home?
 
"The dryland was still doing pretty good yet but it was giving me the rain within days. We haven't had a whole bunch of precipitation this spring yet."
 
So now this takes you out of the danger zone?
 
"Yeah, this will carry us for quite a while. Hopefully."
 
Have you heard anything from down in Texas?
 
"Just what I've seen online. I've talked to a few of my harvester friends and a lot of acres were destroyed out or zeroed out by crop insurance and a lot of them didn't start until a little bit further north into Kansas. And some are just leaving to go down to start in northern Kansas which will be coming on fairly quick from my understanding. Quite early."
 
Where do you normally go?
 
"We'll start in central Montana."
 
You've got a little bit of time then.
 
"Yes we do."
 
A couple of weeks ago we were at Great Falls and things were looking nice and green but then we got up to Conrad and whoa man it was all dried out and the Welkers are dying from nothing. Then last weekend when we were down it trickled on us most of the way back and then it really dumped. So it looks like at least for this area.
 
"Yeah it definitely was needed this precipitation that we got."
 
Shawn Thacker with our co-host David Woodruff on the Harvest USA Report. 

Everybody saying the same thing, what a strange year.
 
Well, let's take a look at where some of the crews are getting busy right now. Deegan Harvesting has the wheels turning again in northern Oklahoma after a long rain delay. That's Deegan Harvesting LLC.
 
According to the Oklahoma Wheat Commission and some photos submitted by Chase Whittam, the wheat harvest this week in Grant County is reporting yields in the upper 40s to 50s and a 62 pound test weight. That's in Grant County in Oklahoma, according to the Oklahoma Wheat Commission. Ferris Harvesting is having a hard time staying out of the rain in Texas, so the boys had some fun and headed to Fort Worth for the day.
 
Paplow Customs LLC over the past week kicked off their 2026 harvest season. They weren't able to start as far south as they would have liked due to the drought, but they are grateful for having harvest work in southern Kansas. They're hoping that this week they can wrap up their first stop of the season and move up the road. They said it might feel like we're actually on the harvest trail. There's some pictures on our Harvest USA Facebook page. Credit to Cole Mast for those.
 
And finally, this weekend, Sanders Harvesting says today is finally the day to make some dust fly in Floyd County, Texas. 
 
And here's some interesting information. Did you know that in 1831, Cyrus McCormick patented the Mechanical Reaper, a breakthrough invention that changed American agriculture forever. Before the Reaper, harvesting wheat required long hours of hand labor with sickles and scythes. 1831, the Mechanical Reaper. 
 
Find this report and our other programs all on HaleBroadcasting.com. That's going to do it for today's report.
 

Our co-host David Woodruff has Dylan DeBock from DeBock Harvesting. 
 
So I just heard a broadcast out of Great Falls and they had the governor of the state and he'd been all up and down the eastern side of Montana and he said we need rain. It was dry last week when I was there and very few places on the plains anywhere that they've got. I think northeastern North Dakota had a little rain and maybe just about enough and there was a pocket somewhere in southwestern Kansas as I recall it. Don't know what happened but we got a crop there and they were the two oddballs. Everybody else is just crying.
 
"I haven't done it as long as some people but this is the driest and the thinnest wheat crop I've seen north to south. Usually we always have a hiccup in our run somewhere. Whether it be a hailstorm obviously droughts is always a big factor but usually it's just kind of contained to one state or one area but this year it's our whole run is stressed. So yeah it's one for the ages I think."
 
Now where was it you're from Oklahoma originally? 
 
"Moreland area. Yeah."
 
Actually I was wrong about never being to Oklahoma. I have been down there. Before the bomber hit I was in Oklahoma City. Brother-in-law was working at Brahms.
 
"Yeah oh yeah. Yeah that's one thing we miss in North Dakota. Oh yes. We do miss our Brahms. They have all their own dairies and stuff so I mean they're vertically integrated. So yeah they only go where their trucks can get there and back in a day."
 
After Alva where do you go?
 
"We go to St. Francis, Kansas."
 
Custom Harvest Dylan DeBock

Our co-host David Woodruff has Dylan DeBock from DeBock Harvesting. You know, I have never asked anybody about varieties. Do you know what varieties? 
 
"The stuff that we were cutting yesterday was double stop." 
 
Okay, it's new and on me. 
 
"The variety that you can spray, they use this so they can control rye and wild oats and stuff."
 
She's got a resistance to something. That's nice to be able to take out what you don't want. 
 
"Right, and it's actually been a good yielder. It's always, usually you gain something, you lose something, but the double stop has held its own for the last two years that we've been cutting."
 
Just really all things for all people type of thing. 
 
"Yep. I mean, obviously it's got a genetic trait, so it's expensive and your typical wheat, but especially in Oklahoma where they do continuous crop wheat on wheat, it's a good option for the farmers to use."
 
You know, I was just thinking about that. I drive a school bus and as I was doing my round this morning, I was thinking one lady told me, oh, they're raising potatoes and potatoes, potatoes, potatoes, and I'm going, I wonder who she's been talking to because you can't raise potatoes one year after another. I mean, the disease will get you, and I got thinking, it seems to me like all I've heard is corn. You can raise corn on corn on corn, and you put corn and soybeans, you'll get a little better yield, but other than that, you don't get really caught, and this is the first time I've heard that you can have wheat on wheat on wheat on wheat.
 
"They've been doing it in Oklahoma since the 30s. Most of this ground hasn't seen anything but wheat."
 
Dylan DeBock with DeBockHarvesting.
 
 

Interview Overview: Dylan Debock from Debock Harvesting in North Dakota was interviewed by David Woodruff from Harvest USA Report, hosted by Hale Broadcasting. They discussed recent harvesting activities and conditions across different states, mainly focusing on winter wheat in Oklahoma.
Harvesting and Crop Performance: Dylan mentioned relocating from Oklahoma to North Dakota and starting harvesting activities in Alva, Oklahoma. The first day's wheat field yielded a favorable 30 bushels per acre with a test weight of 63. However, yields in other fields have been inconsistent, often affected by environmental factors across regions. The variety they used was "double stop," known for its resistance to certain weeds and its stable yield performance over the past two years.

So we're talking to J.C. Schemper, Holdrege, Nebraska. 
 
I guess you've got to have the bad so you can appreciate the good. And boy, do we appreciate the good, huh? 
 
"Yeah, that's right. When you get something good, you sure have to talk about it. But that didn't last very long, of course."
 
So you're into Kansas next?
 
"That's correct. We'll actually go to Carmen, Oklahoma next. They have some 30 to 50 bushel wheat there. Obviously had an inch of rain there last night. So no harvesting going on. No, the wheat's ready. We might have one day next week in the forecast. Maybe, you know, Tuesday, Wednesday. And after that, we've got some chances for rain about every day. So we'll see how this goes."
 
Well, I've got Facebook friends saying Wyoming and Utah and Colorado, they're getting some snow. And I'm going, well, hey, just send a little bit of that east and south.
 
"No kidding, man. I can assure you that. I'm actually in Holdrege, Nebraska today, and we received two inches of rain here in town last night. What a welcome sight to see that much morning. Water puddles around, thunderstorms rolling, because I tell you what, the guys in southwest Oklahoma don't ever remember a year where they never even got a thunderstorm warning until the end of April. That never happens down there. It was just a complete year of just drought. Just couldn't brew up a storm anywhere."
 
Custom Harvester JC Schemper with our co-host, David Woodruff.

Harvest Challenges in Oklahoma and Nebraska: J.C. Schemper from Holdrege, Nebraska, discusses the challenges faced during the harvest season due to adverse weather conditions, particularly in southwest Oklahoma. While one field produced a satisfactory yield of 30.4 bushels, others significantly underperformed with yields in the 10 to 15 range. Concerns over freeze damage, fertilizer issues, and primarily drought conditions have impacted the harvest adversely. Acres have been reduced to a third of normal levels, exacerbating the situation for harvesters.
Variable Bushel Weights and Drought Impact: Bushel weights have fluctuated from a promising 61 pounds down to as low as 48 pounds. Dry land farming in Oklahoma has been especially tough with the current drought, leaving many wheat fields non-existent or unproductive.
Weather Forecast and Movement: As the team plans to move north to Carmen, Oklahoma, and Kansas, they are hopeful for improved conditions, although rain forecasts may pose further delays. There’s a shared sentiment between broadcasters and interviewees for better weather and conditions, noting the need for precipitation similar to those seen in Wyoming, Utah, and Colorado.
Community Impacts and Perspectives: Hale Broadcasting and Schemper discussed the broader community impacts, highlighting the rarity of thunderstorms and adequate rainfall in southwest Oklahoma. Remarks were made on the general state of infrastructure and ongoing road works, underscoring the challenging conditions affecting both agricultural and urban developments.
The dialogue ends on a hopeful note with plans to continue updates as they move further north.

Join co-host David Woodruff as he asks our host, Pennsylvania harvester Eric Wolgemuth questions on protein content in different areas of the country.