Elevators braced for bin-busting harvest
By ROWENA PLETT
Staff writer
A summer of abundant moisture and moderate temperatures has produced what is expected to be a record or near-record fall harvest.
Combines are beginning to roll as the grain gradually dries down.
According to Mike Thomas, manager of Cooperative Grain and Supply in Marion, harvest got off to a slow start.
"It's taking a lot of time for the grain to dry down because of the cool, damp mornings," he said. "Everybody's anxious to get after it before it's time to plant wheat, and it gets frustrating."
The entire elevator has been emptied to prepare for what could be a record harvest. The elevator holds 460,000 bushels.
"It's going to be tremendous," Thomas said. "We'll probably have twice the beans we took in last year. More corn was planted than ever this year. It made over 100 bushels per acre last year and will probably average 140-150 bushels this year. And farmers say the milo is unbelievable."
The elevator will accept only dry soybeans, which will be shipped out immediately on trucks. Any wet milo received will be dried and shipped.
Stan Utting, manager of Agri-Producers, with headquarters at Tampa, said his co-op shipped out 2.5 million bushels of wheat to empty the upright concrete elevators at its six locations.
He said all fall crops are better than average and the harvest will be "much better than last year." Milo is the biggest crop in the area.
"We've gotten about every space that is available on the ground ready for grain," said Dale Klenda, an Agri-Producers employee at Lincolnville.
He said most of the corn and beans will go into the elevator but much of the milo will be piled on the ground.
The co-op has ordered 30 rail cars to haul the grain away as it accumulates, to make room for more.
Some grain will be trucked to the DeBruce elevator at Abilene.
Bryan Harper, manager of the Mid-Kansas Co-op at Florence, has emptied the elevator in expectation of a good harvest.
"This probably will be the best harvest I've ever seen since I've been here," he said. He's been there 10 years.
Harper noted that some beans planted in the river bottoms between Florence and Strong City were destroyed by flooding in late July. He said the blooms were knocked off the plants and the leaves were covered with dirt.
"Other than that, things are looking pretty good around here," he said.
