Harvest is progressing well for Suffolk farmer and contractor Richard Duchesne, with all 172ha of winter barley now cut.

“Barley yielded well, with Flagon doing the best, cut at 13.5% moisture and making the malting grade,” he said.

“Nitrogen was about 1.59% and yields stood at 8.25t/ha, with bushel weights at about 64kg/hl.”

With 48ha of his own oilseed rape to cut at Hall Farm, Bury St Edmunds, and 32ha of contract combining, Mr Duchesne hoped to get on today (August 8).

However, following a heavy downpour yesterday, rain was still hampering progress.

“The rain delayed the start of combining and has made our rapeseed harvest stop and start, but nothing is coming to too much harm yet.

“Wheat isn’t fit yet, but it will probably be ready within the next week to 10 days,” he added.

“I’m a little apprehensive about it as there are lots of negative stories, but there’s nothing I can do now. We’ll just have to see what comes in the tank.”

Mr Duchesne expected reasonable results from the oilseed rape but had concerns about establishment after harvest.

“The ground is wet,” he said. “I had a few sinking moments at the beginning of the barley harvest, and although the ground is travelling alright now, I don’t think that it is going to plough or solo drill very well.”

With an extra 800ha of combining to do this year, he hoped to get back onto the land soon with his new New Holland CR9090, which was performing very well so far despite some tricky conditions.

Crop: Winter Barley
Variety: Flagon
Area: 172ha
Yield: 8.25t/ha