Harvest has been moving quickly the past two weeks in Northwest ND. Most fields of small grains are harvested and producers are cutting canola. Safflower is ready for harvest but it will still be a couple weeks before soybean and sunflower are ready to cut. A few wheat and durum fields were left to dry a few weeks longer due to late tillers (sometimes called sucker heads) causing issues with high moisture grain. Late tillers were found in fields in which main stems matured quickly during the drought in May and June and then tillered again after rainfall in early July. In areas that experienced drought in May and June, yields are below average to average while areas that caught a bit more rain are seeing average to even a little above average yields. There are some areas of good yields near Ray and further east into Mountrail County where rainfall was more abundant.

In western Divide, Williams, and McKenzie Counties, drought conditions persist. The Drought Monitor condition was downgraded to the Moderate Drought category for these areas last week. The lack of soil moisture will hurt winter wheat establishment. There are no strong chances for rain in the 10-day forecast, so fall-seeded crops will struggle to put on growth. The night of September 7^th brought the first frost to the area with another frost possible overnight of the 8^th. However, after the 9^th, high temperatures are expected to climb back into the 70s and 80s and overnight lows will be in the 40s and 50s. The return of warmer temperatures will help speed up dry down of soybean, sunflower, and any other crops left to harvest.

Clair Keene

Extension Cropping Systems Specialist

NDSU Williston Research Extension Center