New crop giving farmers an alternative to wheat

ENID, Okla. (AP) _ If a test proves successful, combines in the years to come won't be harvesting just the latest wheat crop in northwest Oklahoma. <br/><br/>The test project is to see how canola would

Monday, June 27th 2005, 11:00 am

By: News On 6

ENID, Okla. (AP) _ If a test proves successful, combines in the years to come won't be harvesting just the latest wheat crop in northwest Oklahoma.

The test project is to see how canola would grow in this area, and from early reports, it seems tests are going well.

``It has some pretty good potential,'' said Bart Cardwell, Oklahoma State University Extension agriculture educator for Garfield County, ``if we can grow it. We've watched it grow for a year.''

One of several farmers taking part in the project is Joe Peeper, who planted 86 acres of canola west of Enid.

He was out harvesting his canola last week.

``I think it's going to be pretty good,'' Peeper said. ``It's going to be a good alternative crop.''

The project, which includes about 11,000 acres of canola in northwest Oklahoma, is sponsored by OSU and Monsanto, Cardwell said.

Once the canola crops are harvested, the seed is taken to elevators in the area, including Johnston Grain elevators in Hunter and Fairview, as well as one in Kansas, Peeper said.

Then, Cardwell said, the seed is sent to crushers in the northern United States, where the oil is squeezed out of the seed. Each canola seed is about 42 percent oil, he said.

The oil is used in canola cooking oil, Cardwell said. The rest of the seed is used to make a high-protein livestock feed.

Canola can be used in a rotation with wheat, Cardwell said. Both crops have the same growing season. Canola is planted in September, as is wheat, and is harvested in June.

One benefit of rotating the crops, he said, is the canola, used with a herbicide, would help clean up the weeds in wheat that have been a problem recently.

Peeper, whose brother, Tom, is a professor at Oklahoma State University and a weed specialist, said he hasn't had much problem with weeds, but he would rotate canola with wheat in his fields for another reason.

He raises most of his wheat for seed to sell to other farmers. In order to try new varieties, his land has to be out of wheat production for at least a year.

Planting canola is one way to keep part of his land out of wheat production and still have a crop.

``This is my first crop,'' he said, ``so I'm giving it a try.''

He plans to continue with canola, planting at least some of his land each year in the crop.

Harvesting canola requires the same equipment a farmer would use for wheat, both Cardwell and Peeper said. The combine has to be set up a little differently to adjust for the different crop.

One question researchers are looking into is the extent cattle can be grazed on canola.

``Can cattle graze on it?'' Cardwell said. ``Yes. To what extent and how long, we don't know. There's a lot of questions we haven't answered from the grazing standpoint.''

``I think the seed crop is more important to producers.''