Harvesting weather a godsend for South Canterbury growers

A crop of maize harvested at Matakanui Station near Omakau last week was one of the best owners Andrew and Tracy Paterson have grown. Photo / Alexia Johnston

Many Canterbury growers have gone from last year’s harvest from hell to a “heavenly harvest”.

Fine and settled weather arriving in the heart of harvesting was a godsend for particularly South Canterbury growers.

That’s unlike last year when relentless rain across much of the region caused major headaches in the shape of sprouting, flattened crops, boggy paddocks, increased demand for drying facilities and quality issues.

Federated Farmers Arable chairman Colin Hurst said he hadn’t seen a better harvest since returning to the family farm at Makikihi in the late 1980s.

“In all my farming career this would be the best harvest ever. It’s been the harvest from heaven or heavenly harvest, I think.”

He said it was unheard of that all the grass seed was harvested in January without rain on it and the autumn-sown wheat crops were completed within five days from Waitangi Day onwards.

“There were good 10-hour harvest days on the trot and we got 180ha done so that was pretty impressive for us.”

Many South Canterbury growers had experienced the same good run, he said.

Overall, crop yields were better than average without being exceptional.

Hurst said heavy rain in July and August on heavier soil types had resulted in average crops in these areas. However, the overall average was up as growers escaped crops being written off as they were last season.

He said the harvest had been more drawn out in Mid Canterbury from some wetter weather.

Unlike further north, where Cyclone Gabrielle had played havoc with maize crops, Hurst’s family farm lies in the Waimate district where it remains dry.

He planted maize on the property for the first time this season.

Initially, the crop was being grown for grain, but he was having second thoughts about harvesting it in late March as silage because of strong demand or taking it into August for grain harvesting.

He’s made the call to take half for grain and the other half for silage to make a comparison of which option worked best.