Winnipeg, Sept. 20 (MarketsFarm) – Alberta farmers made some harvest progress during the week ended Sept. 17, but progress remains well behind normal, according to the latest weekly report from the provincial agriculture department.
While warm and windy conditions allowed for a resumption of the harvest, the progress was slow with showers limiting activity.
The total harvest was estimated at 18 percent complete, which was up five points from the previous week, but well behind the five-year average of 31 percent done. On an individual crop basis, canola was only 6 percent harvested provincially, while wheat was 15 percent done. An additional 40 percent of the canola and nine per cent of the spring wheat was swathed.
The harvest was most advanced in southern Alberta, where nearly 50 percent of the major crops were done. However, the Peace River and northwest regions were only 4.5 and 3.0 percent done respectively.
While precipitation was causing harvest delays, the moisture helped hay and pasture conditions improve, according to the report. Pastureland was rated 45.6 percent good-to-excellent, which compares with the year-ago level of 27.8 percent good to excellent and the five-year average of 40.5 percent.
