ESTEVAN — Harvest for LeBlanc Farms Inc. began a little later than normal, but now it’s off to “a good start,” according to owner Jason LeBlanc.
In an Aug. 22 interview with SaskToday, LeBlanc said they started harvest about 10 days earlier and efforts have been progressing well. Peas were bleached and the quality wasn’t what they hoped for due to late rains, but the bushel weight was there.
“We’ve been right on top of it,” said LeBlanc, who farms west and north of Estevan. “As the crop ripens, we’re taking it off about as fast as you can get. I think this whole area has realized that there’s a kochia problem … some guys are getting a little eye opener when they get into the fields because it’s out there, it’s just underneath the crop, and that’s caused us a little bit of havoc.”
The operation has installed dryers to help handle the issue.
They were about halfway through lentils with a few more days of work remaining. About nine quarters of durum have also been taken off.
“We have four combines going on lentils and one combine is staying in the durum,” said LeBlanc.
Once lentils are complete, one unit will continue working on durum while the other four machines move to canola.
“Due to the excessive moisture, we had to swath some of the canola. We haven’t done that in six years … But we got a fair bit knocked down, and that will give us a jumpstart … so we’ll be able to pick that up with the headers and go right into full-swing durum.”
Neighbours have also started harvest.
When seeding began in May, LeBlanc said conditions were dry. Then the Estevan area received five inches of rain in eight days around the Victoria Day long weekend, which caused concern with canola. Hot, dry conditions early in the summer also caused damage.
“The crops that were seeded a little bit later this year seem to be the rock stars so far. Most years it’s the early crops that are the better ones, but the ones that were seeded a bit later, they’re outyielding the early-seeded stuff at this point.”
The farm avoided the hail that struck other operations.
“I’ve been in that position before when you get 100 per cent hail on 50 per cent of your farm, and it hurts. But we were lucky to escape it this year,” he said.
“Some of my friends and neighbours weren’t so fortunate. They got wiped out … It’s not fun to go through that. It hurts not only your crop, it wrecks your yards and buildings and windows, and it’s a tough one.”
While current market prices aren’t favourable, LeBlanc said it’s largely a “great” crop this year.
“We haven’t had a crop like this in years,” he said. “The El Nino weather pattern had predicted that this would be the year that things change and we get a [good] crop … We went through years of dry and some grasshoppers, and then this was the swing year, and sure enough, it’s exactly what happened.”
LeBlanc wished fellow farmers the best and encouraged them to stay safe during harvest.
