Wheat Crop Could Challenge Yield Record

BY DANIEL GRANT, FARMWEEK

Wheat growers harvested nearly two-thirds of the crop through the first full week of summer in Illinois, mostly in the span of just one week. And if early yield reports are any indication of production, this crop could challenge the existing statewide yield record of 76 bushels per acre set in 2017.

(RICK SIEMER)

“There was a significant increase in acres planted last fall (with farmers on pace to harvest 130,000 additional acres this season compared to 2020),” said Rick Siemer, president of Siemer Milling Company in Teutopolis. “It’s my opinion this will be the best wheat crop we’ve ever grown in Illinois in terms of field yield and test weight, assuming it doesn’t get rained on too often,” he said. “The quality we’ve seen so far, from our standpoint of milling characteristics, is as good of crop as we’ve ever seen.”

Torrential rainfall that flooded much of central Illinois in the past week wasn’t as significant in key wheat growing areas in northern and southern Illinois. Many farmers in southern Illinois opted to harvest wheat early in some areas, and at a torrid pace to beat the rains, and some returned to the field.

“There was a serious threat of rain, which was realized, so for several days before that there was perfect harvest weather and farmers were really pushing to get wheat out of the field,” Siemer said.

Illinois growers cut more than half the crop (51%) in just one week (June 21 to 28) to push wheat harvest to 63% complete as of June 28, five points ahead of last year’s pace.

“I’ve got to give farmers credit. They went after it,” said Dave DeVore, grain merchandiser at Siemer Milling. “A lot of the crop is harvested south of I-70, I’m hoping at least 80%.”