Hayden on Harvest: Custom harvesting crew cuts hail-damaged wheat in Nebraska

A custom harvesting crew encountered severe hail damage while harvesting wheat in northwestern Nebraska, with some fields producing only a fraction of their expected yield.

The crew began harvesting a field that initially appeared capable of producing 35 to 45 bushels per acre, although the operator estimated it could have yielded closer to 50 bushels without hail damage. Much of the crop had been knocked to the ground before harvest, leaving grain heads scattered across the field.

As harvest continued, the crew moved to another field where hail damage proved even more severe. The wheat was expected to produce only about 7 bushels per acre, compared with an estimated 35 to 40 bushels under normal conditions. The operator said the crop barely produced enough grain to cover the cost of operating the combine.

Harvesting the damaged crop required running the header close to the ground to recover as many heads as possible. The lodged wheat also contributed to additional wear on cutting components, requiring the crew to stop and replace a broken knife section before returning to the field.

The operator noted uncertainty about why the producer elected to harvest such a low-yielding field, suggesting the decision may have been related to crop insurance requirements or the producer’s desire to remove the damaged crop before future field operations.

Inspection of the crop showed many wheat heads had lost nearly all of their kernels, with large amounts of grain already lying on the ground following the storm. Although portions of the field briefly produced 10 to 12 bushels per acre, the overall average remained near 7 bushels.

After completing the remaining winter wheat acreage, the crew removed combine headers and parked equipment while waiting an estimated week to 10 days for spring wheat to mature. The operator said winter wheat generally fared better than spring wheat in the area, with some spring wheat fields not expected to justify harvesting because of hail losses and poor crop establishment.