Optimism comes with start of Kansas wheat harvest

WICHITA, Kan. (KWCH) – Combines will soon be rolling across the state with wheat harvest underway in Kansas. With it comes some optimism and an improved outlook from the last few years hampered by extreme drought conditions. This year, much-needed rain came with severe weather that presented some problems.

“Sporadic little storms that came through here, it did cause some damage,” said Harvey County farmer John Janzen.

Fortunately, the storms weren’t catastrophic for his land east of Newton.

“Two inches of rain after a fairly dry but intermittent rain spell was not a disaster,” Janzen said.

Rising temperatures brings urgency as we approach mid-June.

“Breezy, sunny day when the wheat’s dry enough to combine, you can see the urgency of getting this crop in as soon as possible,” Janzen said.

Reflecting on past years, it’s an improved situation from the drought that for some, proved to be devastating.

October of last year, of [2023], it was really, really dry,” Janzen said. “We planted wheat in October, November, and also planted alfalfa that just did not come up and we declared it a total loss.”

With the wheat crop, Janzen said he’s thankful for what nature’s provided.

“Hot, dry win in late June is a blessing,” he said.

While he expects this year’s harvest to be better than the last couple of years, the true test is in the numbers.

“Weight, moisture, protein, we aim to do the highest quality” Janzen said.

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