Gift for Grain: Hancock County brothers state wheat yield champions for third time

Feb. 11—After winning the state's wheat yield contest in 2017 and 2018, the owners of Hancock County's S & J Emmick Farms near Lewisport went two straight years thinking they did not have a wheat plot that would yield enough to compete.

But for their 2022 wheat crop, Jesse Emmick said they knew they had a field that had potential.

For the contest, only a 3-acre plot is measured for its yield, regardless of a field's size.

"If we have some (field) that's making a lot, we measure some off," he said.

And during this past growing season, S & J Emmick Farms knew they had some wheat fields with areas of high yields.

Jesse Emmick, who farms with his brother Shelby Emmick, said they had good overall wheat harvests during the past two years they didn't enter.

However, they didn't feel confident they had a potential prize-winning 3-acre plot.

"We were averaging a little over 100 bushels per acre, but we didn't have anything that would make more than 118 or 119," Jesse Emmick said. "We knew there was no way we would win it."

But this year they knew that had a real chance.

For the 2022 contest, the brothers used the Pioneer 25R59 variety, recording an average of 132.68 bushels over 3.5 acres to become the 2022 state champion in the no-till wheat category.

"The whole crop averaged 110 bushels per acre over 800 acres," said Jesse Emmick, adding that this was one of their best wheat crops ever.

Brothers Shelby and Jesse Emmick are part of a multigenerational farm that goes back to the early 1800s. They started farming with their late father Stephen Emmick and have continued the family's agricultural legacy, which once included raising hogs.

"Crop farming is nothing compared to the time and effort it took for livestock," Shelby Emmick said.

The Emmick brothers now grow more than 5,000 acres of row crops, with the bulk being corn and soybeans that are planted in the spring.

The wheat is sowed in the fall, giving little downtime for the brothers who also are helped by three employees — Kyle Duncan, Gerry Wilson and Robert Ramsey.

"If you want something to sell, you have to have something growing all the time," Shelby Emmick said.

Shelby Emmick said wheat requires a sandier soil to grow well. They find their sandy ground near the Ohio River.

"You also have to have well-drained soil for wheat to grow very good," Shelby Emmick said. "...We have some that we know going in that is subject to flooding. The river is a blessing to us as far as the sandy soil, but if it gets too high it can flood it. It's a fine line there. The river can either make us or break us."

And by winning, the farm was not only awarded plaques, but also the Don Halcomb Traveling Trophy, which is in the Emmicks' possession for a third time.

If the Emmick brothers were to win the no-till wheat yield championship this year, it would give them the most wins of any farm in the state.

"We don't raise wheat to win state championships," Jesse Emmick said. "The state championships are just a byproduct of sound management."