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2006 Wheat Quality Council
Hard Spring Wheat & Durum Tour Completed

Summary by Ben Handcock, Executive Vice President

The Wheat Quality Council hard spring wheat and durum tour was conducted July 24-27 in North Dakota plus parts of South Dakota and Minnesota.   (Tour Map)   There were 41 participants this year, many of them newcomers.

The 272 spring wheat fields surveyed averaged 31.7 bushels per acre, down from 35.5 in 2005. The 19 durum fields averaged 23.3, down from 29.6 last year. The 3 hard winter fields we evaluated were listed at 45.3 bushels, up 14 bushels from last year.

The average for all fields surveyed was 31.3 bushels per acre compared to 34.9 last year and a tour 5-year average of 34.7 bushels. (Tour Results)

Day one covered the southern half of North Dakota, southwestern Minnesota and northeast/north central South Dakota. Yields were good (40 bushels +) in the eastern parts of the route. Yields diminished quickly as we moved west. Our high yield was 58 bushels; our low was 1.9 bushels with a day one average of 30.8 bushels per acre. Southern most routes found harvested areas and wheat rolled into bales of hay.

Day two covered the northwest and north central parts of North Dakota. Even the northern most areas were showing signs of heat stress and yields were not as good as we expected to find. As we approached the Devils Lake area, yields were much improved. Our high for the day was 51.7 bushels, our low was 8.7 with a day two average 28.8 bushels per acre.

Day three concluded the tour by covering northeast/north central North Dakota and northwest/west central Minnesota. This appeared to be the best area on the tour, as it usually is. Yields ranged from a high of 66.7 to a low of 15.3 and an average of 37 bushels per acre.

This crop is as variable as any I have ever seen on this tour. Even in areas where the crop was pretty good you could find fields with extremely low yields. One or two small showers of rain had made a huge impact on production. Planting dates also seemed to play a role in yield potential.

The severe drought in the south central and southwestern areas was quite evident to all participants who traveled there. Yields immediately dropped to the teens or single digits, and significant amounts of wheat was already baled up for livestock feed.

The good news about this crop is the lack of disease pressure. Scab is almost non-existent and will not produce the huge discounts producers encountered last year. Early harvested wheat appears to have quite good quality, so that is a plus.

There were smaller heads than most previous years and fewer kernels per head. There were also lower head counts than many years due to less tillering caused by drought and heat stress.

The later maturing wheat still has a chance to be pretty good if some rain comes and temperatures ease up a little. If neither of those things happens, I would expect very high proteins and lower test weights in the later crops.

The next three weeks to a month will tell the tale on this crop. We can only hope for the best.

Our results should not be viewed as official. The North Dakota Ag Statistics will release official yield projections on August 11.

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