Given the choice between harvesting in temperatures approaching 40 C or late into a cool fall, Rob Park will take the heat.
But the oilseed specialist for Manitoba Agriculture said combining in extremely high temperatures of the last few weeks has made for some challenges.
Chief among them is the possibility of fire.
Park’s family had two combine fires this harvest at its farm north of Carman, Man.
“We just finished 600 acres of oats and a quarter of canola,” he said. “It was 35 degrees plus, and we struggled to keep the combine cool the whole time.”
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Even though they washed the radiator and cleaned the air filters daily, they still had small fires under the engine.
Park said he doesn’t remember a harvest that was so easy – aside from the fires. A solid two weeks of work and it was over.
There have been numerous reports of fires across the parched grain belt, although he is unsure if there are more than normal.
Farmers should take care of their combines to help guard against the possibility.
“It’s really important to just make sure you’re not having straw build up in the combine,” he said.
“That’s also hard on equipment.”
Some farmers are not driving their trucks on the field, preferring to park them at the edge and drive the combine to them for unloading.
Others have water trucks nearby.
At Pense, Sask., Jim Wood had a 4,000-gallon tanker sitting at the edge of his canaryseed field.
“We haven’t had to use it, thank God.”
Terry Hildebrandt, who farms near Langenburg, Sask., said he had heard of farmers who parked their combines during the day and worked in the cooler temperatures of the night.
Even then, he said, grain was coming off at 36 or 38 C.
Park said although farmers are busy taking advantage of the warm, dry weather to get their harvesting done, they need to remember to take care of the grain already in the bin.
“We’re encouraging people to be very careful about cooling their grain down,” he said.
“Hot grain has a tendency to generate its own moisture and more heat. Aeration is certainly needed.”
In some cases, fans have been running all night to cool binned crops.
Park said moving a load of grain out of a bin and putting it back will help.
Stored grain should also be probed to check temperature and moisture levels.
“Farmers should make a conscious effort” to do these things, Park added.
“It’s an extra half-hour job and it’s well worth the time.”
