While other parts of the U.S. suffered through drought and a poor wheat harvest, the Pacific Northwest was the nation’s bright spot. Thanks to a cooler summer, many producers saw average to above-average yields with good quality. There were some reports of frost damage in the higher elevations and some…
As Andrew and Jessica Schafer’s kids — Riley (9), Aiden (7), and Sloan (4) — grow, so does the struggle to keep up with their favorite harvest tradition. “We pile all five of us into the combine to go cut the outside round and test the wheat, to make sure…
The Goetz family grows winter wheat and some canola about seven miles north of Marlin in Grant County. Kevin Goetz is the fifth generation to farm in the area; he and his wife, Jennifer, returned to the family’s operation in 1997. “I’ve farmed with my dad, Les, ever since 1997….
For the Powers family outside of Bickleton, Wash., family farming means that, literally. Mitchell and Taylor Powers and Mitchell’s parents, Lance and Susan, run the show with no hired help, although there could be a new supervisor on the scene — Renzie, Mitchell Powers’ 2-year-old son who is named after…
Peanut, a ranch horse that’s afraid of cows, could soon give wheat a run for its money as Eastern Washington’s most favored export — at least for children. SaDonna Heathman and her husband, Lee, own Heathman Farms north of Hartline, Wash. They currently grow wheat and canola, but spent many…
One of the most recognizable landmarks in the Palouse has been given a new lease on life, thanks to the community of Oakesdale, Wash., the Innovia Foundation, and the Port of Whitman County. The Port was awarded a $1 million Community Economic Revitalization Board (CERB) grant in January to fund…
Traveling to the state’s capital for Olympia Days was a truly incredible experience, and I am very grateful to have had the opportunity to engage with so many different people and be a voice for Washington wheat growers. Although I enjoyed my entire trip to Olympia, what stood out the…
Getting to experience Olympia Days and everything that it brought forth was an experience that was not only personally eye-opening, but also one that made me all the more proud to come from a community that champions agriculture. It was really rewarding to see how a group of farmers and…
Returning to her family’s Whitman County farm may not have been in the cards for Carrie Bellecourt, but she’s found a way to honor her background by sharing her wheat-growing knowledge with her first-grade classes. Bellecourt grew up in Steptoe, Wash., the daughter of Jim and Cathy White. Jim was…
Editor’s Note: Part 1 of “The Catch” ran in the February 2026 issue of Wheat Life. That last day of harvest was marked by the cutting of the border between the families’ two fields. It was very early in the morning, earlier than usual, when Buck fired up his combine…
