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equipment models orders being placed now
will not be ready until 2023 or 2024. This
means farmers are having to make big fi nan-
cial decisions based on the current crop
prices, which could easily change by the time
the equipment is available.
“For my chemical needs, I try to plan six
months in advance,” Weishaar said. “I’m buy-
ing more than I need, rearranging things to
store everything. You could almost say I’m
hoarding at this point,” he said with a laugh.
“I know it’s cliche, but it’s been the perfect
storm,” Walenta said.
Don Wysocki, local Oregon State Univer-
sity Extension soil scientist, said equipment
maintenance this past winter was more diffi -
cult than usual due to supply chain problems.
“Parts are a problem,” Wysocki said.
“Combine repair needed to be done early,
before the Midwest soaked up all the spare
parts. Distribution and freight cost more,
even when supplies are available.”
Older producers have gone through tough
times and know how to tighten their belts, he
said, but this might be the fi rst time younger
farmers have faced challenges like this.
“Infl ation might aff ect interest rates. If
you need to borrow capital to buy land, or for
an operating loan, it could cost you more, or
you’re simply priced out,” he said.
Kevin Scheibner, 51, who grows wheat
and runs a cow-calf operation in upper Wild-
horse Creek near Athena, echoed Wysocki’s
comments on the eff ects of infl ation.
“Seed costs and any petroleum-based
products have gone through the roof,”
Scheibner said. “But we make adjustments
and carry on. American farmers face what-
ever the world throws at us, and keep moving
forward.”
High petroleum prices
slam local fruit growers
“Orchardists and fruit growers power their
wind machines with propane,” said Roger
Lemstrom of Los Rocosos Vineyards in Mil-
ton-Freewater’s Rocks District. Besides using
these giant fans for warming, they still use
old-fashioned smudge pots fueled by diesel,
he noted.
It’s not just pain at the pump for local
farmers and orchardists. High prices for
other petroleum products such as agricultural
chemicals also squeeze growers’ profi ts.
“(Infl ation) diff ers by region,” said Corey
Coad, president of agricultural supplies at
Orchard & Vineyard Supply, with loca-
tions in four states. He’s based in McMinn-
ville, but is familiar with OVS’ business in
Milton-Freewater.
“In some areas, fertilizer prices have shot
up by 500%,” he said in late May. “In the
Pacifi c Northwest, it’s 50% to 150%. For pes-
ticides, it’s 175% since January of 2021.”
Coad explained the problem isn’t just with
supply and demand for hydrocarbons. Ship-
ping containers are in short supply as a result
of pandemic-induced interruptions to inter-
national trade. Many active ingredients in
agricultural chemicals come from overseas.
Crop nutrient prices also rose as a result of
sanctions on supplier Belarus, curbs on Chi-
nese fertilizer exports and sanctions on Rus-
sia, a big provider to Brazil, according to Reu-
ters in May.
The cost increases, combined with fuel,
lubricant and other agricultural chemical cost
hikes, mean farmers may have trouble turning
a profi t even with higher crop prices. Ukraine
is a major wheat exporter, so war on the Black
Sea has naturally boosted grain prices.
Midwest farmers have adapted by plant-
ing more nitrogen-fi xing soybeans and less
corn, but enduring drought reduces yields for
all crops. Northeastern Oregon farmers and
ranchers have fewer options, with the mar-
ket for peas so much lower than in previous
decades. Canola is not a legume.
Wysocki said one option is to grow a nitro-
gen-fi xing cover crop, such as peas. The crop
is terminated before its water use threatens
grain yield, but still adds some nitrogen to the
soil. Cover crops can be planted in the fall or
spring, but it’s always a risk in the fall, since
producers can’t know how wet the winter will
be.
Management practices also can make less
fertilizer go farther, such as split applications.
Again, growers don’t know how much mois-
ture to expect, so Wysocki recommended
applying an average amount in the fall, then
top dressing in the spring. With a wet win-
ter and spring, such as this year, farmers can
get more crop growth per fertilizer buck by
applying when it’s most needed.
Costlier application methods can save on
fertilizer. Liquid solutions applied with pes-
ticides in the spring make both agricultural
chemicals more effi cacious.
“Producers might want to consider whether
to bale their straw or not, now that the value of
nitrogen has gone up,” Wysocki said.
Wysocki also said the war aff ected both
supply and Black Sea shipping, so he didn’t
see change coming abruptly.
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