May 15, 2024

 

Carter County - Michael Hansen

We finished planting on May 4th. Absolutely perfect timing because from the 6th to the 9th we received 3 inches of rain. What a blessing! The only bad thing is that even in the county it wasn’t very widespread. Neighbors to the north barely got a sprinkle. Biggest worry now is that if all the crops will get pushed through the crust that is going to form. The gumbo doesn’t like huge rainfall events and 1.7 inches of that came in one hour. Winter wheat needs sprayed but is too wet to do that yet. Hopefully next week we will get that accomplished. Been branding calves and getting cows put where they need to be. Cows are probably 75 percent done calving already.  I always forget what I have been doing when I write these and if no one noticed I sent the same pictures two weeks in a row, so I made sure to take some new ones…haha. Moisture conditions have been excellent. There has been 3 inches of precipitation since last week. Planning on growing Winter wheat, Durum, Barley, Garbanzos, Canola, Mustard, Oats, Hay, and Hay barley. Winter wheat is in the tillering growth stage. Barley is in the 1-leaf growth stage.

                  

 

Fergus County - Boyd Heilig

We finally were able to start spraying the winter wheat this week. Crops look really good so far. Last week we received 2.5 inches of rain/snow. Lost our power for a couple days. Very thankful for Fergus Electric and their crews to get things back up. Moisture conditions have been excellent. Planning on growing Winter wheat, Spring wheat, Barley, and Canola. Winter wheat is in the tillering growth stage. Spring wheat is in the 3-leaf growth stage. Barley is in the 3-leaf growth stage.

 

Fergus County - Robert Bold

One third done spraying winter wheat and one half done spraying chem fallow. The warm season weeds are showing up. Winter wheat is whiskey bottle high and loving this spring.  The joint is not very far below the ground. For how rapid it is growing, it appears to be an early harvest. Just as the wheat crop is enjoying this weather, I am enjoying this grain market. Getting some 24 and 25 crop marketed. Precipitation this past week was somewhere over 2 inches.  It gets difficult for me to accurately measure horizontal precipitation in a vertical moisture measuring device. Planning on growing Winter wheat and Spring wheat. Winter wheat is in the tillering growth stage. Spring wheat is in the 2-leaf growth stage. There are reports north of here of hopper hatches and lots of them.

 

Gallatin County - Dale Flikkema

Spring planting is good so far. Moisture conditions have been good. We have received 1 inch of precipitation within the last week. Planning on growing Winter wheat, Spring wheat, Lentils, Canola, Mustard, Hemp, Corn, Sunflower, and Hay. Winter wheat is in the 5-leaf growth stage. Spring wheat is in the 2-leaf growth stage. We need more moisture.

   

  

Hill County - Trevor Wolery

We had a once in a lifetime weather event last Tuesday night with wind averaging 50+ mph and gusts exceeding over 60 mph. Rain totaling 1.82 inches during that storm with the northern portions of the farm totaling over 4 inches, also receiving an additional .13 inches this morning. HRW is in need of a herbicide control and will be a dance this week trying to cover some acres before it outgrows our spray window. Springs crops are 90% emerged and off to a great start. Fallow acres will soon be glowing and in need of attention soon. Rain makes grain! Very blessed to have it! Everyone stay safe and enjoy this weather. Moisture conditions have been excellent. Planning on growing Winter wheat, Barley, and Mustard. Winter wheat is in the tillering growth stage. Spring wheat is in the 1-leaf growth stage. Barley is in the 3-leaf growth stage.

  

 

Judith Basin County - Greg Mathews

It was a great week, it rained and got very little snow this last week. Got a total of 0.83 inches of needed moisture. To the north, west and east saw a lot more snow and rain. Here it was from 2 to 3 inches. The wind was terrible and a report of 90 mph south of the Gap! They also had power outages as they lost some power poles. Will start spreading fertilizer on the SW this week. The WW needs to be sprayed in the area, but people were waiting for the freezing temps to be done. Hope the weather continues to help everyone. Moisture conditions have been good. Spring wheat is in the 2-leaf growth stage. Barley is in the germinating growth stage.

 

Toole County - Klayton Lohr

We have finished seeding! Moisture conditions have been fair. We have received 1.3 inches of precipitation within the last week. Planning on growing Durum this growing season. Spring wheat is in the 1-leaf growth stage. Decent moisture so far, none predicted in the 10-day forecast, which is not what I want to hear. Kochia weeds are a problem.

 

 

May 7, 2024

 

Blaine County - Raymond Keller

Peas and lentils are seeded and we are getting the spring wheat in now. Moisture conditions have been fair. There has been .1 to .6 inches of precipitation within the last week. Planning on growing Winter wheat, Spring wheat, Peans, and Lentils. It has been cold and windy lately.

 

Carter County - Michael Hansen

Almost got planting wrapped up and am working on the last of the chickpeas as I write this. As long as the drill stays running should be done by Saturday. Still decent moisture; two inches down where they are going so hopefully they will sprout. Another dry and windy week, getting into the tractor this week has been a workout in itself. Once a guy finally gets it open you had better hold on or you will go for a ride. Think four days of forty mile an hour gusts. That has pretty much taken all the fun out of spring work. Still freezing almost every night and really starting to make the once promising looking winter wheat crop look quite poor. That and no moisture in the last month is taking a toll. There is still time for a little drink but not many. The rest of the crew has been busy calving, emptying out the feedlot, and helping me keep seed in the drill, because a farmer is only as good as his ground crew. The weathermen are once again giving us hope of a four-day rain event…maybe the third times the charm. Moisture conditions have been fair. There has not been any precipitation since last week. Planning on growing Winter wheat, Durum, Barley, Garbanzos, Canola, Mustard, Oats, Hay, and Hay barley. Winter wheat is in the tillering growth stage. Barley is in the germinating growth stage.

 

 

Cascade County - Steve Sheffels

All the seeds are in the ground and all but one winter wheat field has been sprayed for weeds. The forecast has about an inch of rain coming in the next couple of days. The rain and some warmer weather should have the barley and peas popping out of the ground. Moisture conditions have been good. There has been .2 inches of precipitation within the last week. Planning on growing Winter wheat, Barley, and Peas. Winter wheat is in the tillering growth stage. Barley is in the germinating growth stage. We had some significant frost the last of April/first of May. It’s hard to see the yellowing from the wide shot, but the close up shows some of the more significant damage. Most of the damage is on older leaves, so hopefully, it will all recover well. There was a fair amount of brome and prickly lettuce in the winter wheat. It probably would have been better to spray 2-3 weeks earlier.  In the future, we'll have the robots do the spraying while we seed.

  

 

Chouteau County - Nathan Keane

300 acres of canola left to seed and we’ll be done. Moisture conditions have been excellent. There has been .8 to 1.2 inches of precipitation within the last week. Planning on growing Winter wheat, Barley, Lentils, Garbanzos, Canola, and Hay. Winter wheat is in the 4-leaf growth stage. Spring wheat is not yet seeded. Barley is in the 1-leaf growth stage.  I do not have any weather concerns at this time. No insects or diseases to speak of just prickly lettuce.

 

Fergus County - Boyd Heilig

The spring crops are coming up nicely here. Just this morning we received .45 inches of rain which will definitely help. The winter wheat has had a rough couple weeks and needs some warm weather to take off again. Haven’t been able to spray because of the cold nights. Moisture conditions have been good. We have received .45 inches of precipitation since last week. Planning on growing Winter wheat, Spring wheat, Barley, and Canola. Winter wheat is in the tillering growth stage. Spring wheat is in the 2-leaf growth stage. Barley is in the 2-leaf growth stage.

 

Fergus County - Robert Bold

Done seeding and both winter and spring crops are top dressed. Getting concerned about the winter wheat getting too far along for spraying without some notable crop damage. The growth stage of the winter wheat crop is at least 2 weeks ahead of normal for this date. The warm season weeds like kochia and buck wheat are not up yet. Cheat grass is even in slow growth mode. The soil temp is almost 60 at surface and 46 at the 4.5 inch level. Nice slow rain with no wind this Monday (5/6) afternoon. Supposed to get several inches over the next several days. I see wheat prices are up and approaching 50% of where they were; machinery prices are 50% over where they were, and interest is up 188%. The majority of the spring seeded acres are done. We and some others have alfalfa to seed yet.  Waiting for the night temperatures to warm up so we don't have to worry about freezing. Moisture conditions have been good. We received .55 inches, and .38 inches in last 4 hours this Monday, of precipitation within the last week. Planning on growing Winter wheat and Spring wheat. Winter wheat is in the tillering growth stage. Spring wheat is in the 1-leaf growth stage.

 

Gallatin County - Dale Flikkema

Small grains are seeded and we are going to start corn, sunflowers and alfalfa soon. Moisture conditions have been fair. We have received .25 inches of precipitation within the last week. Planning on growing Winter wheat, Spring wheat, Lentils, Canola, Mustard, Hemp, Corn, Sunflower, and Hay. Winter wheat is in the 4-leaf growth stage. Spring wheat is in the 1-leaf growth stage. We need more rain.

 

Garfield County - Scott Glasscock

We are done seeding just in time for this great rain we’ve been blessed with. We have gotten 1.75” so far and it’s still raining as of today (5/7). It’s been pretty dry here so everything is soaking in. We have most of our chem fallow sprayed and fertilizer spread. Now it’s time to brand calves and get moved out to summer pasture. Still lots of spraying to be done yet as well. Typical busy month of May.  So thankful for the rain. Moisture conditions have been good. We have received 2.25 inches of precipitation within the last week. Planning on growing Winter wheat, Spring wheat, Peas, Lentils, Corn, Hay, and Speltz. Winter wheat is in the tillering growth stage. Spring wheat is in the 1-leaf growth stage. Hopefully we wont get any grasshoppers.

 

Hill County - Trevor Wolery

Soaking in the rain today (5/7). Have had .5 inches currently but some surrounding neighbors have 3X that amount. Lots of wind with it but a beautiful rain that will put a smile on any banker. Weed control in the HRW will be the focus once the sun shines. Hoping everyone gets some precip. Moisture conditions have been excellent. We have received .62 inches of precipitation within the last week. Planning on growing Winter wheat, Barley, and Mustard. Winter wheat is in the 4-leaf growth stage. 

 

Judith Basin County - Greg Mathews

Finished seeding last week and was waiting for the moisture to come this last week. We only got a drizzle or 0.02 inches. Moore and Lewistown areas got a lot more. The storms were very streaky with snow and/or rain. The ww looks a little damaged from last weeks frost and cold temps. There are still a few seeding but most are done seeding cereals. The spring seeded crops are showing up and looking fine. Nice to see the green growth. Will spray sf this week with the weather cooperation.  We need some moisture and waiting for the storms that are expected this coming week per the weatherman forecast. Hope they are right this time and everybody gets some. Moisture conditions have been fair. Got 0.05 inches of precipitation over the last week.

 

Liberty County - Vince Mattson

We are near completion for spring planting. Moisture conditions have been good. We have received 3 inches of precipitation within the last week. Planning on growing Winter wheat, Spring wheat, Lentils, Garbanzos, Canola, and Mustard. Winter wheat is in the 3-leaf growth stage. Spring wheat is in the germinating growth stage. I do not have any weather concerns at the moment. It just got a nice shot of water and now needs some heat units. 

 

Teton County - Mitch Konen

Spending time in the hurry-up and wait gear as the crops germinate and emerge. Finished seeding last Tuesday night. Only time I can recall of having my seeding chores done before May. Probably close to 95% of the bench has been planted. A few acres have been left to give the wild oats time to grow and then will be eradicated before being drilled. Spent last weekend spraying the dryland fallow ground as it was getting pretty ragged looking. Looks like some much needed moisture is in the forecast. I am actually surprised at how much moisture is in the spring seeded fields, but the winter wheat and short-grass prairie ground is drying quickly as evidenced by a little stress in the plant growth. The cold nights don't help much either though. Finally getting some non-freezing temps at night is helping also. First drilled crops are emerging now. Moisture conditions have been fair.  We have received .31 inches of precipitation within the last week. Planning on growing Winter wheat, Spring wheat, Barley, and Hay. Winter wheat is in the 5-leaf growth stage. Spring wheat is in the 1-leaf growth stage. Barley is in the germinating growth stage. A concern for me is rain forecasted but having a hard time reaching us on the bench with these westerly winds reaching 35+mph.

    

 

Toole County - Klayton Lohr

I am 85% complete with seeding. Moisture conditions have been fair. We have received .3 inches of precipitation within the last week. Planning on growing Durum this growing season. Spring wheat is in the germinating growth stage. Have had lots of wind, which is a concern of mine. I have found kochia, tansy mustard, and cheat grass.