Hesse. Harvest begins in Moselle: "The weather is our boss"

At the Hermitage farm in Hesse, the days always begin the same way. Even before putting on his boots and servicing the vehicles, Hubert Helvig scans the sky... or rather, his weather app. "The weather is our boss. It decides everything," smiles the farmer and mayor, glancing at the humidity level of the morning dew.

This Thursday, July 10, the verdict is clear: after the rains at the beginning of the week, the wheat is still too wet to be harvested. So it will be rapeseed, waiting for the golden ears to dry enough to pass under the combine blade. "The rapeseed is a month early. Then we'll tackle all the wheat on Saturday. That way, the straw will have two days to dry in the sun, before the next rains expected on Tuesday or Wednesday," he anticipates. A tight window, because the slightest return of humidity or rain could impact the quality of the grains: "We had two good storms at the right time, during the...

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