Harvest gets underway following challenging growing season

“All in all we’ve been really quite pleased, surprisingly, given the conditions,” says Nichole Neubauer, a farmer in the county. “We’ve been really pleased with our yields in our cereals. They’re maybe just slightly less than average.”

The Neubauer farm is located just north of Irvine, and grows cereals, oilseeds, forage and raises beef cattle. The farm has been in the family for 112 years and Neubauer said the land never disappoints.

“Even when mother nature is stingy with the rain and creates a lot of heat, we’re always amazed and surprised at how our land continues to produce and thrive under every circumstance there is,” Neubauer said.

While Neubauer and her family are pleased with the outcome of this year’s harvest, she describes it as the “most expensive crop in history.”

“Our inputs were through the roof this year,” said Neubauer. “Whether it was fertilizer, the cost of crop protection, the cost of fuel… the most expensive crop in history is going in the bin right now.”

August’s high temperatures have played a part in getting that crop into the bins. Equipment like combines and semi trucks run the risk of overheating while driving to and from the fields. The heat also makes harvesting more difficult for farmers operating the equipment. However, all the hot weather does have some advantages.

“You still need to combine your crop when it’s really, really dry,” said Neubauer. “You want a very low moisture content so it doesn’t spoil in storage so being too dry hasn’t been a problem this year.”

Rain is in the forecast for parts of southern Alberta, which Neubauer said is a good thing because it brings the fire hazard down and cools down the operators, but can lead to some bleaching for farmers who aren’t finished harvesting.

“I think in southern Alberta, at this stage of the game, we’ve been in a drought condition since 2017 so we’ll never complain too much about the rain,” laughed Neubauer.

Harvest is the time of year when it is not uncommon to see large farm equipment sharing the road with regular vehicles. Cypress County asked drivers to keep an eye out and remember that the rules of the road apply to everyone, regardless of what you are driving.

“Especially in the rural areas we’re just trying to share the road and make sure everybody gets home and to their destination safely,” said Lisa Sulz, agriculture supervisor with the county.

“It’s obvious, you can see the equipment,” said Sulz. “But they’re travelling at much slower speeds than regular vehicles so you approach those large vehicles much quicker than you might expect.”

Sulz reminded people in the area that this could go on for another month and urges drivers to be patient if they come across a large piece of equipment.

Meanwhile, Neubauer pointed out that the equipment travelling from the field to the bins is providing food to much more than southern Alberta. Given all the global uncertainty right now, “one could argue it’s the most important crop in history,” she said.

“Food security is top of mind for all nations in the world,” said Neubauer. “As an Alberta farmer, I’m just proud to contribute what we can to the world’s population.”

by Meghan Cobb

Harvest gets underway following challenging growing season

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