More settled weather meant northern growers were pressing on with harvest this week (w/e September 7), and potato producers were about to start lifting maincrop varieties.

Grainfarmers trader Bruce Ferguson said about 75-80% of the barley had been cut in central Scotland, compared with just 25-35% in Aberdeenshire.

South of the border, growers in northern England had made great progress over the past week, with 90% of the wheat now cut, although yields were at best only average.

Harvest continued to drag on at Priors Farm, Berkshire, thanks to flat spring barley and breakages. “We seem to have had three days of harvest left every day – it just doesn’t seem to get any closer,” said Richard Brown.

In East Yorkshire Adrian Hatchett’s yields were close to 8.5t/ha (3.4t/acre), with a couple of pleasing exceptions in the varieties Oakley and Duxford.

And in Northern Ireland Graham Furey had finished his spring barley, which yielded 5.6-6.2t/ha (2.25-2.5t/acre). He planned to make a start on his wheat tomorrow (September 6).

Rain in Shropshire meant the combine hadn’t been out much this week at Sandy Walker’s farm, where he still had 48ha (120 acres) of Alchemy and Gladiator wheat and 32ha (80 acres) of Doyen spring barley to cut.

He planned to begin lifting the 61ha (150 acres) of maincrop potatoes next week, and expected yields to be about average.

Early potato yields had been about 2.5t/ha (1t/acre) down at Trevear Farm, Cornwall, where Richard Thomas had had a “challenging season”. He now had 8ha (20 acres) of Rooster to lift, which he expected to yield 37-49t/ha (15-20t/acre).