“We wanted to see if we could stubble-crop and make a little more money,” Jeff said. “We decided on lentils because of the nitrogen they put back in the soil. We started with a few acres. Since then we’ve added more every year.”

Faster Payment

The lentils on durum stubble that fall returned cash more quickly than durum and substantially more per acre. In the eight years that have followed that first crop, lentils have returned as high as $14.40 (Canadian) for a 60-pound bushel and never lower than $8.40.

“If we had just kept our old farming practices we would be out of business right now,” Jeff says. “I don’t think we could have survived. There wasn’t enough money in durum, and only half the farm was in production (at any one time).”

The brothers admit it was financial worries that drove the change to lentils. They had started farming with durum on summerfallow, had planted some canola, and had cattle. But they were also doing “lots of custom work to make ends meet.”

Economic Decision

“The price of durum was such that we just couldn’t seed summerfallow,” Jeff recalls. “We had to try something new to make the land payments. That’s why we diversified. Really, that’s what changed us.”

The change to direct-seeding into wheat stubble also required new equipment. There wasn’t much used equipment available when they first planted lentils in the spring of ’94, but they were able to purchase the air seeder they needed. “We thought that if we changed, we could do a bunch of custom work and afford an air seeder,” Jeff said.

Surprise Benefit

It didn’t take long for stubble cropping to provide several additional benefits. Durum seeded directly into the lentil stubble performed better than expected. The brothers had anticipated the worst, a lower than normal yield because the crop wouldn’t have the gain of moisture and fertility from a year of summerfallow.

“The durum yield was a little less than on fallow, but we found we were getting more protein and basically a better grade,” Jeff said. “The protein premium helped it recover most of the net value per acre.”

Use Less Fertilizer

As a third benefit, the lentils didn’t need much fertilizer. “We experimented with fertilizers over the years and found that the more fertilizer we applied, the bigger the plant and the lower the yield,” Jeff said. “So we cut back the fertilizer.”

Continuous cropping has completely replaced summerfallow on this farm. All 4,260 seeded acres are now planted on stubble. Rental rates for land have also doubled since ’94 as land owners realized lentils and chickpeas generate a higher return.

The paying half of the farmland is now sown to four varieties of chickpeas on 780 acres, two varieties of lentils on 690 acres, 300 acres of field peas, 160 acres of barley, and 200 acres of an oats-pea mixture for cattle feed. The brothers have a 100-cow commercial herd on 2,000 acres of pasture.

Instant Cash Flow

Modest average yields of lentils have been 25 to 30 bushels an acre. “We can contract that right now for around $10 a bushel, where durum is at $4 to $4.50 (Canadian) and you have to wait 18 months to get your full payment from the Wheat Board,” Jeff said. “Pulse crops give an instant cash flow when you sell.”

Chickpeas have been even better. Expensive to plant, the investment pays for itself, Jeff said. “You can have $200 an acre into your chickpea crop before the harvest starts,” he explained. Chickpeas require about two bushels an acre of seed at $20 to $50 a bushel and up to four aerial applications of fungicide at $25 an acre each.

Yields for chickpeas range from 15 to 40 bushels an acre. The smaller type, Desi, has been paying growers about $10 a bushel, while the much larger type, Kabuli, has been paying $23. A Kabuli crop could return $500 to $700 an acre compared to $200 to $250 an acre for an outstanding durum crop.

In the past, the Weal brothers best durum on summerfallow yielded 35 to 50 bushels an acre, about 10 bushels above average. An average yield on durum stubble probably would have been about 20 bushels an acre. Today, durum on lentil stubble and boosted with 200 pounds of nitrogen and phosphate pays dividends. “We are finding an 8-to 10-bushel yield increase on lentil stubble and higher protein,” Jeff said. Their durum crop, in exceptionally dry conditions in recent years, has still produced 25 to 35 bushels an acre on lentil stubble. In good years a durum-on-lentil crop has yielded close to double that amount.

New Equipment Needed

Better machinery was at the top of the list when Jeff and Jason switched to lentil production. “We’ve definitely improved our machinery line,” Jeff said. “We’ve been able to update equipment a little bit every year.” An air seeder, swather, and pickup reels were needed initially just to get into pulse and oilseed production.

New seedings of lentils first paid the way for an updated combine. Two years later, the brothers purchased a new 360-horsepower tractor to pull the air seeder with its mid-row banding system. Another new tractor with front-wheel assist and New Holland SupersteerTM came next, followed by a land roller they share with two other farms.

“Our investment is higher today,” Jeff said, “but in the end we make more money. We don’t have a bunch of cash, but we do have some equity in equipment now, that otherwise, we couldn’t have purchased.

“We’re fairly optimistic. Some farmers aren’t, I guess. I don’t know how you can still be in the game and not hope that next year is going to be the big year.”