By TIM THORNBERRY
Kentucky Correspondent PRINCETON, Ky. — The price of wheat and soybeans versus the ever-increasing price of energy may influence many double crop growers whether to plant or not to plant as the wheat harvest gets closer.
Sam McNeill, extension agricultural engineer with University of Kentucky (UK) College of Agriculture suggest growers weigh both issues before deciding. He said farmers will begin to harvest wheat in the next few days around Kentucky.
“Wheat prices at $6 per bushel, soybeans at $12.40 per bushel and the cost of fuel to dry the crop will be factors they need to consider when deciding whether it’s better to harvest wheat early and dry it with LP gas or let the crop dry in the field,” McNeill explained. “An earlier wheat harvest means soybeans can be planted sooner to achieve their maximum yield potential, but it also means using fuel that is now running around $2.50 per gallon. On the other hand, a delayed harvest means delaying sowing soybeans for a few days.”
Moisture is also a key issue in the decision-making process, claimed a report from the Ohio State University Extension and Dr. Jim Beuerlein, a professor of horticulture and crop science.
“Soil moisture present at the time of wheat harvest is the critical factor for determining the potential yield of the soybean crop. If soil is quite dry at the time of harvest, double-cropping should not be attempted. Soybean seed planted into dry soil will not germinate until enough rain falls to allow germination,” Beuerlein said.
“This may occur too many days after harvest for satisfactory crop growth and yield. If the subsoil has been depleted of moisture by the wheat crop, soybean growth will depend totally on rainfall. Usually rainfall amounts during July to September are inadequate to support adequate growth of the second crop. Most failures can be avoided by not planting when the soil is dry at the time of wheat harvest. If June is dry, do not try. The soybean crop should be planted without tillage to save all available moisture.”
While this spring has seen an abundance of moisture which has given way to nearly record August-like temperatures in the first week of June.
“Of course, towards the end of the harvest season, wheat will be dry enough to avoid a drying charge altogether, but by that time soybean yields will have fallen off dramatically,” said McNeill.
According to information from UK, pre-harvest estimates predict average wheat yields near 70 bushels per acre in Kentucky this spring, but each day the harvest is delayed could result in a wheat yield loss of 0.1 bushel.
As well, the average yield for double-crop soybeans of 43 bushels per acre could drop by 1 bushel per day for planting past the optimum date. Considering a wheat moisture level of 25 percent, the drying and handling cost would be about $28 per acre.
If harvest begins a few days early, the gross returns would be $414 per acre for wheat and $533 per acre for soybeans.
After drying costs, the combined returns would be approximately $919 per acre. This compares to $580 per acre at this time last year when prices were much lower.
With that information in mind, farmers will be footing the bill for other necessities such as fertilizer, seed, diesel fuel, crop protection chemicals and labor, all of which have risen drastically in price. But McNeill stresses that the potential for profit outweighs the cost of production in this case.
“So the bottom line is that higher grain prices trump higher energy prices this spring,” he said. “In fact, farmers can net about $1.80 per acre for each day they harvest wheat before the target and lose about $10 per acre for each day soybean planting is delayed afterward. For this reason I look for more farmers to be drying wheat this spring to boost their soybean yield and net profits.”
Details on wheat drying and a spreadsheet to help calculate gross profits from soybean and wheat crops after subtracting drying costs are available at UK Extension county offices or online at www.bae.uky.edu/ext/Grain_Storage |
