BISMARCK, N.D. (GroundReport) – According to statistics, North Dakota barley production jumped in 2008, thanks in large part to the perfect weather during the growing season in the east.
"It was cool all summer. We really had only one real hot day," said Louis Arnold, a farmer in the Esmond area, reports The Associated Press. "Barley likes 80 degree weather and some moisture, and it was all perfect this year."
Arnold said this is the best ever barley yield he has had. He told AP that his total crop averaged 80 bushels per acre. "That’s never happened," he said.
The Agriculture Department’s North Dakota barley production estimate of 86.2 million bushels is 11 percent higher than 2007- that figure is nearly double the production of two years ago.
Barley is primarily used to make beer and feed livestock. North Dakota is the nation’s largest barley-producing
"I think barley is going to be a pretty good crop again next year," Arnold said, reports AP.