December 18, 2019
Harvest challenged by wet, cold temps
By JILL DENNING GACKLE
For the 14 years Chris Gratton has been the manager at the CHS Garrison facility he has wanted a grain dryer. This year was the first year he thought the want could have been called a need.
A late, wet corn crop caused area farmers to purchase their own dryers, which are fueled by propane, if they didn’t already have one, Graton and Paul Schlichting, Cenex manager, said.
Schlichting said, “Did they want to buy dryers this year? Probably not. It’s not a great farm economy for them. You don’t really have a choice when you have 1,000 to 2,000 acres of corn out there and that’s your pay day.”
More grain drying, meant a greater use of propane, which caused propane shortages elsewhere and freight challenges here.
North Dakota was among eight U.S. Midwest states that declared emergencies in recent weeks over regional shortages of propane needed by grain farmers to dry their crops amid a late harvest and wet weather. Other states were Illinois, South Dakota, Minnesota, Nebraska, Iowa, Indiana and Wisconsin. Spring flooding and cool temperatures here led to many fields of corn not harvested until late fall. Some fields of corn are still standing.
Nationwide, the U.S. Department of Agriculture reported that 89 percent of the corn was harvested. At the end of November, the USDA said 70 percent of the corn in North Dakota was still standing in the fields. As of Dec. 9, 36 percent of the corn was harvested.
A late, wet corn crop caused area farmers to purchase their own dryers, which are fueled by propane, if they didn’t already have one, Graton and Paul Schlichting, Cenex manager, said.
Schlichting said, “Did they want to buy dryers this year? Probably not. It’s not a great farm economy for them. You don’t really have a choice when you have 1,000 to 2,000 acres of corn out there and that’s your pay day.”
More grain drying, meant a greater use of propane, which caused propane shortages elsewhere and freight challenges here.
North Dakota was among eight U.S. Midwest states that declared emergencies in recent weeks over regional shortages of propane needed by grain farmers to dry their crops amid a late harvest and wet weather. Other states were Illinois, South Dakota, Minnesota, Nebraska, Iowa, Indiana and Wisconsin. Spring flooding and cool temperatures here led to many fields of corn not harvested until late fall. Some fields of corn are still standing.
Nationwide, the U.S. Department of Agriculture reported that 89 percent of the corn was harvested. At the end of November, the USDA said 70 percent of the corn in North Dakota was still standing in the fields. As of Dec. 9, 36 percent of the corn was harvested.
