Unusually wet fall weather has Georgia wheat farmers planting
their smallest crops in
almost 20 years, said a University
of Georgia agronomist.

“We’re hoping farmers can get 250,000 to 280,000 acres
planted this year,”
said Dewey Lee, an
extension agronomist with
the UGA College of
Agricultural and Environmental
Sciences. “That’s just about two-thirds of last year’s
400,000 acre crop.”

Not since the 1979 crop of only 210,000 acres have wheat
farmers planted such a small
crop.

Although Georgia farmers never raise enough wheat to
significantly affect the wholesale
price of wheat and flour on international markets, a half crop
will affect the farmers.

“There will certainly be a loss of farm income,”
Lee said.

George Shumaker,
a CAES economist,
estimates Georgia wheat farmers will lose about $18 million in
total income from this
short crop. “If it’s not planted, they can’t harvest
it,” he said.

Shumaker based the loss estimate on how much farmers would
earn if they had been able
to plant and harvest a full crop. That loss doesn’t include the
loss of wages to farm
workers and extra help at millers, either.

Wet weather from late September through December has farmers
still trying to harvest
cotton and soybean fields. Until they can get those crops out of
the fields, wheat and
other small grains can’t be planted.

And even in harvested fields, Lee said the saturated, soggy
soil won’t support the
weight of planting equipment.

“We’re at the point now, that I’m telling farmers that
if they can’t get wheat
planted before the third week of December, to not even try to
get in there,” Lee
said. After that point, the cost to grow and manage the crop
well is greater than the
potential income, and farmers could actually lose money.

He explains that in the seven to 14 days after the ideal
planting window for wheat, the
yield potential drops by 15 to 20 percent. From 15 to 21 days
after the planting window,
the potential yield drops by almost half.

“That’s true no matter what variety you plant,” he
said.

With less than half of Georgia’s typical crop to buy and use
next spring, flour millers
across the Southeast will have to buy wheat from other areas.
Lee said Georgia farmers
plant mostly soft, red winter wheat. This wheat is milled into
flour used in soft baked
goods like doughnuts, cookies and cakes.

“A lot of Georgia’s wheat ends up on Georgia families’
tables,” said Lee.
“But, this year, that won’t be the case.” The Georgia
shortage will force
millers to bring more wheat in from other areas, Lee said. He
said the farmer’s and
miller’s problems will have little to no effect on the price of
baked goods for consumers.

But reduced acreage is just one problem wheat farmers face.
Soggy fields make growing
wheat and other small grains more difficult.

“Continued wet weather will really tax farmers’
management,” Lee said.
“They’ll have to carefully time nutrient applications and
manage to increase
tillers.” Rain can wash away pesticides, nitrogen or other
nutrients, too.

Wet soil also limits wheat growth. Soggy soil keeps oxygen
away from roots, preventing
good root system development. Without good roots, the plant
can’t absorb nutrients and
produce enough heads for high yields.

“It’s already started out as a tough year for small
grains producers in
Georgia,” Lee said. “All we can do now is hope the
weather cooperates so the
wheat that is planted can produce a good crop.”