MANITOBA
SOUTHWEST
Unseeded acres abound
A few days of good weather helped farmers with workable fields get a lot done, but millions of acres of farmland remain unseeded.
Generally minor but continual showers have stopped progress on much land, not giving farmers a chance to get out with machinery.
Progress is greater north of the Trans-Canada Highway, but is still less than half done in most areas. Progress is more limited south of the highway.
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Much flooding is still occurring in low-lying areas and near the Souris and Assiniboine rivers.
Few crops have emerged yet because of cold weather and late seeding.
Pastures are green and hay is growing well, if slowly.
CENTRAL
Seeding advances
Cool, wet conditions have hobbled seeding, but a spell of dry and warm weather helped farmers move ahead.
Some producers suffered large showers, scotching their plans, while others received none at all and made much progress.
Farmers around Carberry, Roland, Jordan, Sperling, Kane and Altona are the most advanced.
Cereals are more advanced than other crops and weeds need to be sprayed.
Farmers have reseeded wheat and oats because of saturation damage to seeds.
Some canola, soybean and potato crops are emerging. Farmers are backing away from corn, sunflower and soybean acres because their longer maturity raises fall frost risk.
Both in-crop and pre-seeding spraying is occurring.
Flea beetles are reported.
Hay is growing well and pastures are lush, except where there is flooding.
NORTHWEST
Progress varies
Seeding progress varies wildly across the region, with the zone near the Saskatchewan border mostly completed and the area east along the lakes less than one-quarter complete.
Heavy showers have significantly delayed progress.
A few good days of warmth and dryness allowed many producers to make progress, including seeding, spraying and harrowing.
Pastures are good in general, but low-lying ones are saturated and river and lakeside pastures are often flooded. The flooding of Lake Manitoba is getting worse and cattle producers will need to keep animals away for months.
EASTERN
Fields too wet to seed
Scattered showers prevented many farmers from being able to finish seeding. What few good weather days there were had many farmers waiting for ground to dry.
Most wheat, barley and oats are in the ground, with canola and flax also almost complete.
Sunflower producers are backing away from acres as the seeding date gets later.
Emergence has been good except where saturation and cold has rotted seedbeds and caused patchiness.
Winter wheat is tillering and being sprayed.
Pastures are greening up slowly but well, and hay is good. Flooding is common.
INTERLAKE
Rain causing problems
Rain keeps coming back, stopping progress.
A dry spell wasn’t enough to change the situation radically and farmers continue to abandon plans for acres of canola and switch into cereals.
Pastures and hay land are good, except in low areas where flooding is a continuing problem.
SASKATCHEWAN
SOUTH
Delays continue
More rain in many parts of southern Saskatchewan pushed seeding progress further behind schedule.
Southeastern regions, particularly producers south of the Trans-Canada Highway, are struggling with excess moisture.
In those areas, farmland is waterlogged, roads are rutted or washed out, field access is limited and flooding is widespread.
Seeding throughout the southeast was estimated at 40 percent complete as of June 6.
Progress is well below that in many areas and spring work had barely started in some rural municipalities.
Seeding progress ranged from one to 90 percent complete, depending on the area.
Growers near Rocanville are among the hardest hit, many having received 250 to 300 millimetres of rain since April 1.
Some farmers in the hardest hit areas are still hoping to mud in crops, and others are looking at alternative seeding methods, including broadcasting.
They are altering rotations and seeding intentions to include more oats, barley, greenfeed and possibly flax. Others have abandoned any hopes of seeding a crop this year.
Crop reporters in the province’s far southeastern corner are predicting significant unseeded acreage.
Farmyards, corrals and hay fields were saturated in many areas and flooded in others.
Pasture conditions were improving but some cattle producers were still feeding their herds as of last week.
Seeding progress is more advanced in the south-central and southwestern regions.
Seeding progress as of late last week was 40 to 60 percent complete in a large rectangular area from Regina to Swift Current and south to the U.S. border.
CENTRAL
Completion varies
Producers in many parts of eastcentral Saskatchewan made good seeding progress last week and were 83 percent complete as of June 6.
Fields were still wet in some areas and seeding in some RMs was still far behind schedule, ranging from 15 percent complete in some parts of crop district 5A south of Yorkton to 100 percent complete in district 6a, south and east from Saskatoon.
Rain halted field work in some eastcentral areas, but only temporarily.
Flooding is a concern in some municipalities, while crop development looks good and spraying is well underway in other RMs.
A significant amount of land around Yorkton and Melville is likely to go unseeded this year.
Parts of district 5B north of Yorkton could also be set aside for summerfallow because of excess spring moisture.
Cropland moisture in east-central Saskatchewan was rated as 23 percent surplus, 75 percent adequate and two percent short.
Seeding progress was complete or nearing completion in most west-central areas with 98 percent of acres planted as of June 6.
Some farmers are returning to seeded fields to seed or till acres that were too wet the first time around.
NORTH
Crops in good condition
Producers in northeastern Saskatchewan, including crop districts 8A, 8B and 9AE, were mostly finished seeding last week with an estimated 97 percent of acres planted as of June 6.
Plant development varies widely but crops are generally in good condition.
Topsoil moisture was rated as 80 percent adequate as of early last week, but growers in many areas are looking for rain. It’s a surprising situation given how wet the region was last fall and entering the spring.
Frost damaged crops in some areas and excess moisture is still a concern for some producers.
Spraying operations are in full swing and cattle are mostly on pasture.
Many areas in the northwest received 25 millimetres of rain or more during the first week of June, providing a welcome boost to emerging crops, pasture and hay land.
Seeding as of June 6 was 95 percent complete and topsoil moisture on land under cultivation was 66 percent adequate and 29 percent short.
Hay land is 43 percent adequate and 51 percent short on moisture.
Frost hit crops hard in some areas with night time temperatures dropping to -9 C on some farms.
ALBERTA
SOUTH
Seeding almost done
Up to 80 millimetres of rain in the southwest and south-central regions halted all farming operations.
Four to five percent of farmland remains unseeded because of excess moisture and are likely to remain so. Surface moisture is rated at 33 percent excessive and 67 percent good to excellent.
Insect pests are not an issue. Winter cereals are in the late tillering stage and in good condition. Other crops are also emerging, but warm dry weather is needed to promote growth.
Hay and pasture conditions have improved, with 57 percent rated good and 33 percent excellent.
NORTHEAST AND NORTHWEST
Crops need rain
Seeding is about 90 percent complete in the northeast and finished in the northwest, where conditions remain dry.
Little rain fell in the Vermilion, Camrose, Provost, Barrhead, Leduc and Drayton Valley regions throughout May and more moisture is needed in most areas.
Frost in late May damaged alfalfa and canola crops, which may result in canola reseeding.
Two percent of cropland in the northeast will likely remain unseeded.
Frost was also reported in the northwest but without major damage.
Grasshoppers are reported in the region but are not a major problem.
Soil surface moisture has declined, with only 29 percent rated good, 12 percent excellent and one percent excessive. Subsoil moisture is slightly better. Hay and pastures also need rain.
CENTRAL
Crop behind schedule
Cool, showery weather last week hindered completion of seeding. Progress is slightly behind last year and behind the long-term average.
Frost was reported in the west-central region without major damage.
Slightly more than one percent of cropland may remain unseeded because of heavy precipitation in the western foothills.
PEACE
Insects take toll
Seeding is largely complete. Rain is urgently needed to encourage crop emergence and growth.
Flea beetles are becoming a problem and 47 percent of the region rates infestation at moderate to high levels warranting treatment.
Grasshoppers, cutworms and wireworms are also taking a toll.
Soil moisture is the biggest issue, with four percent rated poor, 23 percent fair, 45 percent good and 28 percent excellent to excessive. Subsoil moisture is somewhat better than that.
Fifty-three percent of hay and pasture land moisture is rated as good and 29 percent excellent.