Seeding is progressing swiftly in Manitoba as growers in parts of the province take advantage of blue skies and good soil conditions.
In its weekly crop report issued May 21, Manitoba Agriculture said seeding is 40 to 65 percent complete across the province.
Rainfall over the weekend, up to 75 millimetres near the U.S. border, will delay seeding in certain regions of the province, but the moisture will not halt spring planting in most of southern Manitoba.
Producers in eastern Manitoba are most advanced, as an estimated 80 percent of corn, 80 percent of spring wheat, 60 percent of oats, 50 percent of sunflower and 50 percent of soybeans are now in the ground.
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Southwestern Manitoba isn’t quite as far along. As of May 21, growers had seeded 30 to 40 percent of soybeans, five to 20 percent of canola and 40 to 50 percent of grain corn.
Winter wheat and fall rye crops suffered this spring due to extremely cold conditions in April and a cooler than normal start to May. In southwestern Manitoba, for example, many winter wheat fields have insufficient plant stands and 75 percent of winter wheat acres will likely be reseeded this spring.
Based on the Manitoba Agriculture crop weather report, the province received 25 to 100 mm of rain in the third week of May. The moisture and warmer temperatures expected in the final week of May should stimulate pasture growth and recharge dugouts across Manitoba.
