Winnipeg — The harvest of winter wheat is underway in Manitoba, with farmers starting to combine the crop in the province’s Central region, according to the latest crop report from Manitoba Agriculture, Food and Rural Development issued Aug. 5.
Preliminary results indicate average yields of about 60 bushels an acre for the winter wheat crop, with fusarium damaged kernels present in harvested samples.
In the southwest and central regions, fusarium levels in the winter wheat crop were at moderate to high levels. Other disease concerns across the province were linked to blackleg and brown girdling in canola, as well as brown spot and bacterial blight in soybeans and edible beans.
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Other crops were advancing quickly due to hot and dry weather, though precipitation would be welcomed in some areas to help with grain filling and re-growth in hay fields and pastures.
Though, development does remain variable, with some crops in the northwest region still about two weeks behind the average stage for this time of year.
Farmers were busy monitoring insect activity in their fields, with grasshopper numbers starting to increase in the southwest. In the northwest, bertha armyworms were reported in one canola field, with sunflower fields in the central region being monitored for sunflower beetle activity. Soybean defoliation due to a variety of insects was reported in the eastern region.
Pastures were said to be in good condition in the southwest and northwest. Central region pasture growth was adequate, though rain would help improve conditions. Haying was in full swing across the province.
