Wheat

#WheatTour24, Day 2, Caldwell, Kan.

Day 2 of the Wheat Tour brought Kansas Farmer to Caldwell, Kan., at the Tim Turek farm along the Yellow Route.

Jennifer M. Latzke, Editor

May 16, 2024

4 Min View

Day 2 of the Wheat Quality Council's Hard Winter Wheat Tour saw carloads of participants setting out early the morning of May 15 from Colby, Kan., on routes taking them south, and then back east across the southern part of the state. They will wind up in Wichita, Kan., in the evening, where they'll share their carload estimates and discuss crop conditions they saw in the field.

Tim Turek, Caldwell, Kan., sells wheat seed along the border between Kansas and Oklahoma. His farm sits right along the Yellow Route, which also covers the northern counties of Oklahoma. Turek was optimistic about the wheat in his area. He says the rains started up about 2 to 3 weeks ago, just in time to help the wheat as it was maturing and going into grain fill. He says this year's crop might be average.

Thursday will be the third and final day of the #WheatTour24, with cars heading north for the final leg driving from Wichita to Manhattan, Kan. The final tour crop estimates will be announced at noon, so be sure to follow @farmer_kansas on X to see the results as they're posted. And, send in those crop updates to [email protected].

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About the Author

Jennifer M. Latzke

Jennifer M. Latzke

Editor, Kansas Farmer

Through all her travels, Jennifer M. Latzke knows that there is no place like Kansas.

Jennifer grew up on her family’s multigenerational registered Angus seedstock ranch and diversified farm just north of Woodbine, Kan., about 30 minutes south of Junction City on the edge of the Kansas Flint Hills. Rock Springs Ranch State 4-H Center was in her family’s backyard.

While at Kansas State University, Jennifer was a member of the Sigma Kappa Sorority and a national officer for the Agricultural Communicators of Tomorrow. She graduated in May 2000 with a bachelor’s degree in agricultural communications and a minor in animal science. In August 2000 Jennifer started her 20-year agricultural writing career in Dodge City, Kan., on the far southwest corner of the state.

She’s traveled across the U.S. writing on wheat, sorghum, corn, cotton, dairy and beef stories as well as breaking news and policy at the local, state and national levels. Latzke has traveled across Mexico and South America with the U.S. Wheat Associates and toured Vietnam as a member of KARL Class X. She’s traveled to Argentina as one of 10 IFAJ-Alltech Young Leaders in Agricultural Journalism. And she was part of a delegation of AAEA: The Ag Communicators Network members invited to Cuba.

Jennifer’s an award-winning writer, columnist, and podcaster, recognized by the Kansas Professional Communicators, Kansas Press Association, the National Federation of Presswomen, Livestock Publications Council, and AAEA. In 2019, Jennifer reached the pinnacle of achievements, earning the title of “Writer of Merit” from AAEA.

Trips and accolades are lovely, but Jennifer says she is happiest on the road talking to farmers and ranchers and gathering stories and photos to share with readers.

“It’s an honor and a great responsibility to be able to tell someone’s story and bring them recognition for their work on the land,” Jennifer says. “But my role is also evolving to help our more urban neighbors understand the issues our Kansas farmers face in bringing the food and fiber to their store shelves.”

She spends her time gardening, crafting, watching K-State football, and cheering on her nephews and niece in their 4-H projects. She can be found on Twitter at @Latzke.

See more from Jennifer M. Latzke

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