Early Harvest Expected for Some Ontario Winter Wheat Crops

Some corn, soybeans, and spring cereals have been planted in Ontario despite generally wet conditions, but the biggest spring story may be the quickly advancing winter wheat crop. 

According to Real Agriculture agronomist Peter Johnson, some of last fall’s earliest planted winter wheat fields (mid-September) already had flag leaves emerging as of this week. That means those fields should be starting to head around the middle of this month. And assuming normal weather conditions, the period from heading to harvest is usually around six weeks. 

“We could be combing wheat by the end of June, the first of July in those areas,” Johnson said on the latest update of his crop hotline. “That is crazy early.” 

More typically, winter wheat crops in Ontario start to come off later in July. 

For the 2024 harvest, the Ontario elevator basis range for Soft Red Winter is $1.30 to $1.35 over the July Chicago future, making about $7.35 to $7.40 to the producer as of Thursday’s market close. The spot basis for Soft Red Winter is around $1.30 as well, also making $7.35 to the producer as of yesterday. 

The latest field observations from the Grain Farmers of Ontario (GFO) also noted the earliness of the 2024 winter wheat crop: “It is incredible how advanced some fields are for this time of the year,” the report said. 

Meanwhile, the GFO report said that although there has been enough rain to keep many farmers out of the fields, "a few fields” of corn have been planted where conditions have allowed. Johnston also reported some soybean acres planted - significant acres - in some cases. Spring cereals have been planted in those parts of eastern Ontario that have missed recent rains, he added.