Winter barley harvest continues in the East
Harvest is under way at Chris Ashcroft’s, Wilbraham Farms, Cambridgeshire, with the first of the winter barley being cut.
“We started yesterday (July 18) and have got about 40ha of SY Venture done so far.
“It’s coming in well below 12% moisture and yielding 7t/ha quite consistently with a specific weight of about 72kg/ha,” he explains.
Mr Ashcroft who’s farm is situated between Cambridge and Newmarket says he is a little disappointed with the yield following a more promising looking crop a few weeks ago.
“I think the weather has really accelerated it and bought it forward quicker than it should really, but it’s combining well and we’ll continue with the 100ha that is left over the weekend,” he says.
The September sown crop has looked in good condition all year, according to Mr Ashcroft, who admits he is harvesting it sooner than expected.
This time last week I would have said we were two weeks away, but over the last week it has changed dramatically.
Meanwhile the oilseed rape is approximately 10days off on Wilbraham farms as harvest 2013 moves up a gear.
Camgrain Stores’ David White says they are getting the first few loads into the stores and are seeing a reasonable quality.
Mr White admits that the scorching temperature may have shrivelled the grain up and perhaps it may not be as good as it could be.
“Overall it’s an encouraging start but still early days,” he explains.
