WILCOX, Sask. – The crop was late and, in many areas, running out of moisture. Then it rained.
Saskatchewan grain producers were the beneficiaries of four days of on-again, off-again showers that left the middle of the grain belt damp and other areas soaked.
“There was a couple of inches around Sedley and apparently four south of Riceton. It apparently was needed because it mostly disappeared into the cracks in the ground,” said Tracey Preete of Summit Ag Solutions in Lumsden, Sask.
The slow moving weather system delivered limited benefit to parched areas of arid Alberta and muddy Manitoba, but it dwelled over Saskatchewan for an extended weekend.
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At Viceroy, Sask., farmers reported getting as much as 175 milli-metres, while near the Big Muddy, up to 200 mm caused localized flooding and some soil erosion.
Travis Eldstrom of Assiniboia, Sask., said the rain left combines standing in many fields in the region along the American border.
“This is southern Saskatchewan. We don’t say no to rain, even at harvest time. But this will keep a few operations from taking off their crops as soon as they would like and may affect quality in some early lentils,” said the agricultural consultant.
Jeneen Ewen of Agri-Trend in Avonlea, Sask., said it won’t slow down harvest where the rain fell less liberally. About 50 mm fell in south-central areas.
The fall-seeded crops were nearly ready for harvest or were just started and most of the lentils had yet to be desiccated.
“You wouldn’t welcome it if you’d just desiccated, but other than that, it probably helped avoid more crops burning up, as they were starting to do in last week’s heat.
“The forecast is for more heat so this may have been a good thing, rather than delaying harvest … and it’ll be good for winter wheat seeding,” said the agrologist.
Preete said most canola and cereal crops can use the moisture to complete pod and head filling.
“In some cases, the plants may come on quicker now they have all (the moisture) they need,” he said.
Chad Krikau of Wendland Ag Services in Rosthern, Sask., said there is little harvesting in his area, where the rain was welcomed.
“If this happens again in two weeks when folks are trying to get this crop from field to bin, farmers won’t be as relaxed about this as they are right now,” said Krikau. “Heck, it’s setting us with something for next year.”
