Carl Driver finished combining wheat at Brittons Farm, Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, last night (22 August), leaving just winter beans to cut.

“We’ve spent four weeks cutting wheat, and we couldn’t have finished if it weren’t for Camgrain,” he said.

“There’s still a lot of wheat left out there – probably 50% – because a lot of people have been waiting for it to dry out.

“We have only spent 10 hours combining at under 15% moisture – it ranged from 14% to 25%.”

About 60% of the milling wheat was full-spec, but quality was starting to slip in the later wheat, with Viscount Hagbergs at 140 and the last of the Oakley also suffering.

“It’s so wet and humid now, the issue is how well the wheat is going to hold up this week.”

Yields were 1t/ha (0.4t/acre) down on last year and 2t/ha (0.8t/acre) below two years ago, averaging 8t/ha (3.2t/acre), said Mr Driver.

Gallant yielded the best, at 8.5t/ha (3.4t/acre), with Oakley matching that as a first, second and continuous wheat. Robigus, Viscount and Cordiale did not yield so well.

Flagon winter barley yielded 10% below last year, at 6.8t/ha (2.8t/acre), and most made the malting grade, apart from some high nitrogen samples.

Mr Driver now had 200ha (500 acres) of winter beans to cut, but the forecast for this week was not good. “They’re going to be fairly wet now, but I’m not panicking.

“When we started ploughing the ground was bone dry, but now the moisture is eight inches down and it’s wet on top – it’s gone from one extreme to the other.

“However, the rape is all coming up nicely, so that’s an advantage.”

Crop: Winter wheat
Variety: Gallant
Area: 200ha (500 acres)
Yield: 8.5t/ha (3.4t/acre)

Varieties: Oakley, Robigus, Viscount and Cordiale
Area: 800ha (1976 acres)
Yield: 8t/ha (3.2t/acre)

Crop: Winter barley
Variety: Flagon
Area: 200ha (500 acres)
Yield: 6.8t/ha (2.8t/acre)