Drought leads to tighter Colo. wheat seed supply

Exceptional drought conditions and untimely freezes that have left some southeast Colorado winter wheat fields with nothing to harvest have also limited the certified seed supply for next season.

The Colorado Wheat Research Foundation predicts there will be enough seed available if farmers get in touch with dealers early.

Certified seed growers in northeast Colorado, which got a little more moisture than southeast Colorado this season, say they’ve been fielding calls from southeast Colorado, western Kansas, and the panhandles of Nebraska, Oklahoma and Texas to see if they have surplus certified seeds to sell.

Certified seed grower Dan Anderson near Haxtun says his supply is already about 70 percent sold. He says customers are speaking up for seed earlier this year because they’re aware of drought problems around the region.