Wheat seed short in Kansas

WICHITA, Kan. — Certified seed is in short supply in weather-ravaged parts of western Kansas as farmers head to the fields this fall to plant their 2005 winter wheat crop, seed dealers said.

A long-standing drought, coupled with untimely harvest rains that caused widespread sprout damage to this year’s winter wheat crop, hit seed growers in the region, resulting in shortages of seed in some areas.

Vance Ehmke, a Dighton seed dealer, said certified seed growers in the area harvested about 30 percent of what they normally produce.

Ehmke said his farm had an average yield of 17 bushels an acre — the second-worst crop he has seen in 30 years of farming. The only time it had been that bad was in 1981 after a late freeze, he said.

Aggravating the already short seed supplies in western Kansas were recent rains that caused some soil crusting. That made it difficult for young wheat plants to emerge and forced many farmers to replant, he said.

“Acreage may be up a teeny bit,” Ehmke said. “Far and away the bigger influence is the amount of seed out there.” However, several seed dealers in eastern Kansas — where this year’s wheat crop fared better — are reporting no shortages.

The problem seems to be confined west of the Smith Center area in the northern tier counties, said Shane Ohlde, manager of Ohlde Seed Farms in Washington County.

Last week, Kansas Agricultural reported that 52 percent of the winter wheat crop had been planted in the state. About 24 percent has emerged.

Kansas is the nation’s leading grower of both hard white and hard red winter wheat. The state had been moving toward white wheat because its light-colored flour is often favored by international customers for making noodles, flat breads and other products.