Brooks (Rural Roots Canada) – In part 1 of this 2 part series Jeremy Boychyn, the Agronomy Research Extension Specialist for Alberta Wheat Commission and Alberta Barley, talked about what is Falling Number and why you should keep track of it.   

Managing your grain crop for low Falling Number during harvest may seem impossible given the crop is on the ground, but not all is lost.

Jeremy Boychyn, the Agronomy Research Extension Specialist for Alberta Wheat Commission and Alberta Barley, says there are things you can’t control with a grain crop’s Falling Number and things you can.

“At this point, if you’re in your harvest scenario and you are pulling off a bunch of your wheat, it looks great, and it’s coming off great, and then you are halfway through your wheat, and you get hit with a cold, wet snow, and you aren’t able to get back to it for a week or so later,” Boychyn said.

He says it’s essential to segregate those two crops if you can.

“It’s likely that Falling Number has been impacted by that snow so that if you can keep that later harvested crop in a different bin and manage it differently, it’s going to put you in a stronger situation when you  go to market that grain.”

RELATED: Know What You Grow: What is Falling Number and why you should keep track of it

Boychyn says the next step is to test for multiple sources.

“Sending it to independent accredited labs taking it to different elevators and using the CGC Harvest Sample program, and the reason I say this is because results from Falling Number tests can be variable.”

Boychyn says he had a farmer send him the results from four different independent tests from the same bin, and they all were different.

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He says it’s crucial to leverage higher Falling Number grain.

“To potentially move your Lower Falling numbered grain so keeping those piles separate, and then testing them appropriately separate.”

Boychyn says this then sets you up to have discussions with your elevator on how you can move that grain so they can take both your lower Falling Number and higher Falling Number stuff.

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— Ag Exchange Group (@agexgroup) September 9, 2020