Ag Industry Struggles With Weather Challenges

So far, it’s been a spring to forget for northeastern Montana farmers. If the drought-like conditions weren’t enough to keep growers from sleeping at night, a major wind storm in the middle of May created damage to fields.

Grant Salvevold, who grows wheat, barley, peas and lentils in the Culbertson area, says it’s the worst weather conditions for farming that he can remember.

“The early seeding stuff came up but has struggled with the wind and heat,” Salvevold said. “The late seeding is struggling to get out of the ground.”

Roosevelt County Commissioner Robert Toavs explained that the record heat for this early in the year combined with the amount of strong winds have made pretty much any moisture in the ground disappear.

The wind storm on May 14 featured gusts more than 70 miles per hour and moved large amounts of topsoil.

According to the Montana Climate Office, recently planted fields experienced severe wind erosion as dry surface soils were stripped and transported downwind. In many locations, growers suffered loss of planted seed and exposure of seed rows.

Toavs said he’s talked to farmers who have seeds buried or seeds exposed due to the wind storm.

The commissioner doesn’t know if these days are worse than the 1980s, but he doesn’t remember the wind events happening then like they are now. “That makes the drought more severe,” Toavs said of the wind. “If you talk to someone that’s still around from the 1980s, those were pretty tough times.”

Toavs added, “I can’t say which was worse. It’s pretty devastating.”

Salvevold said some of their plants were damaged and some seeds were blown out by the severe wind storm.

“We didn’t replant because of the dryness,” he added.

Salvevold, like farmers throughout the area, is trying the best in an extremely challenging situation.

“Some of the early wheat and early peas are holding up,” he said. “The later lentils are struggling right now.”

Ranching also has its challenges because of a lack of grass. Toavs said a large amount of rain would be needed to change that trend.

“These are struggling times for farmers and ranchers as well,” he said.

Before last week’s rains, Toavs, who resides north of Wolf Point, said his location had seen only 1.81 inches of moisture since the start of the year.

“In five full months, that’s not a lot of moisture,” he added. “I’ve never seen dust storms like we’ve seen.”

To make matters worse, market prices also aren’t great. Toavs said the market for spring wheat dropped 11 cents last week.

All individuals agree part of the solution will be a good amount of rain throughout the area on a consistent basis. “Right now, it’s week to week waiting for a rain shower,” Salvevold said. He estimates that about a quarter of an inch of rain per week would make a significant difference. “If that doesn’t come, we’re probably done.”

Toavs added, “It doesn’t take a lot of rain. It takes timely rain. Cool weather also makes rain stretch better.”

He doesn’t remember a good year for the ag community during the past five years. His opinion is that if an individual is given everything including land and equipment that they still couldn’t make a living today.

“The answer is commodity prices being such that you can weather a storm even when you have drought conditions,” Toavs said.