Update on canola harvest

Douglas, North Dakota – Bob Finken informed us last week that he anticipated a 25–30% decrease in yield from his canola fields compared to past seasons.

His forecast came true after combining one of his fields over the weekend.

It now runs between 1400 and 1500 pounds. per acre as opposed to about 2000 lbs.

He claimed that while some of his crops appeared better than others, combining would be necessary to determine for sure what was happening.

According to Finken, the decrease is directly tied to the rainy weather, but some soils will naturally produce better than others that are lighter and less able to retain moisture and nutrients.

“Especially on a moisture-limited year when you’ve had showers of rain… if one field caught an extra half inch or an inch of rain at the right time it can make a big difference in what the field actually yields,” said Finken.

Finken estimated that he would be totally finished harvesting around September 21, albeit this is highly dependent on moisture conditions.