Great progress was made with the harvest in the last few days. Farmers down south looked to get the best of the weather and were moving most of the time last week, while Saturday was the first full cutting day for many.

Rain on Saturday night and Sunday night stopped machinery again, but most were cutting Monday evening and Tuesday and steadily getting work done.

Spring barley is the main crop being harvested at present and yields are hugely variable. Wet weather after sowing and dry weather for most of the season played havoc with some crops, while higher-yielding crops seem to have got the right weather at the right time.

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There are still crops reported to be hitting 3t/ac and over, but yields have moved down this week and range from about 2t/ac to 3t/ac.

Moisture contents are generally running around 17-18%, but some fell as low as 14%. KPH levels remained good around the mid to high 60s in most cases.

On this week’s Tillage Podcast Paul Colgan of Bretts reported significant yield differences among varieties this season.

Yields

Winter wheat is reported to be yielding over 4t/ac in the majority of cases, with many crops around 4.5t/ac and a smaller amount hitting 5t/ac.

KPH levels are not hitting too many highs but remain good from about 72 and higher.

Straw yields on spring barley look to be mixed and while the windy weather of the weekend made for good drying it also made for difficult baling conditions.

Rye and oats continue to be harvested and some spring beans are also reported to have been cut in Co Cork, which continues the form of the early harvest, but most will not be ready until the end of the month.

The forecast for the coming week looks like it will bring more good weather to ease pressure on farmers.