HUTCHINSON, Kan. — As the Kansas wheat harvest draws near, the condition of the crop continues to decline.

According to the latest from the Kansas Ag Statistics Service, half of the crop is in poor-to-very-poor shape, with only 16 percent of the crop in good-to-excellent shape.

According to Doug Bounds of the USDA, the harvest is still about a week or two away in Kansas and about two to three weeks away in Reno County and the surrounding area.

The dry, hot weather is not helping. Officials with various agencies say the hot temperatures and dry weather will likely stunt the crop’s growth. In central Kansas, the wheat is 100 percent headed. About 73 percent is coloring.