Henan Rolls Out Comprehensive Measures to Secure Summer Wheat Harvest Amid Wet Weather

Persistent rainfall across Henan province has created challenging conditions for the upcoming summer wheat harvest, raising risks of waterlogging, crop lodging and pre-harvest sprouting in farmland. As China’s core grain-producing region, Henan maintains a wheat planting area of over 85 million mu and has deployed full-scale preparations to guarantee stable summer grain output amid unstable weather patterns.

According to meteorological forecasts, large-scale mechanical wheat harvesting in Henan will take place from May 26 to June 10, with above-average precipitation predicted throughout the harvesting period. Continuous rain and gusty winds have already caused partial wheat lodging in fields across Runan County. Mature wheat crops in areas including Dengzhou and Tanghe have darkened in colour due to humid conditions.

Recently harvested grain samples show elevated moisture content of around 30%, far exceeding standard levels. Prolonged wet weather during the maturation and harvesting stage may trigger grain sprouting and quality deterioration, posing major challenges for local agricultural production.

Local authorities have accumulated rich experience in responding to extreme weather after tackling severe rainy harvest conditions in previous years. Agricultural teams have been dispatched to rural frontlines to guide field management and hazard prevention. Pre-harvest mechanical inspections and maintenance have been fully conducted to ensure operational stability of harvesting equipment. Cross-regional machinery coordination mechanisms are activated to supplement local machinery supply and guarantee timely harvesting during weather gaps.

Post-harvest grain preservation has become a key focus of current agricultural work. Multiple regions in southern Henan have launched intensive drying operations. A total of 492 fixed drying machines are running at full capacity in Dengzhou and Tanghe, with mobile drying equipment additionally allocated to cover remote farming areas and eliminate grain mildew risks.

Large-scale drying facilities in rural operation stations deliver stable processing capacity. Local professional drying bases can process up to 400 tonnes of wet wheat per day, effectively meeting the dehumidification demands of surrounding farmers even under extreme humid weather.

Henan has completed systematic resource deployment for the 2026 summer harvest season. The province will put 215,000 harvesters into field operation. A total of 763 agricultural machinery emergency service teams have been established across the region. Detailed location and contact information of 6,739 drying machines has been publicly released to enable convenient nearby grain drying services for rural households.

Targeted supporting policies covering machinery passage guarantee, fuel supply security and refined meteorological services are fully implemented. The multi-dimensional prevention and control system integrates field management, mechanical harvesting, post-harvest drying and emergency response, forming solid safeguards for stable summer grain production in Henan province.