It’s not as bad as 2011 when floods washed out hundreds of thousands of acres in southwestern Manitoba, but Fred Greig still expresses shock over the amount of water on his land.
“It’s as wet as we’ve ever seen it,” said Greig, who grows winter wheat, spring wheat, barley, flax, peas, soybeans and canola near Reston, Man.
In the third week of June, a massive storm dumped 125 to 150 millimetres of rain on Reston and other parts of southwestern Manitoba. A few days later, June 25, another 100 mm of rain fell on the area.
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In total, southwestern Manitoba received an estimated 150 to 250 mm of rain in a matter of days, flooding fields and marinating crops.
Andrea Arbuckle, Manitoba Agriculture farm production adviser in nearby Virden, said sizable ponds have formed on fields.
“It (the water) is moving and going down but there will be some detrimental impact to the crop that was standing in water for a day or two or more.”
Compared to 2011 when heavy rains in May and June caused extreme flooding in southwestern Manitoba, Greig is feeling fortunate.
That year he seeded a fraction of his 5,300 acres, so he’s grateful for small blessings.
“We’re pretty happy at least we got it (the crop) in,” he said.
Greig’s cereal crops are faring well with the moisture but his flax may be a writeoff.
After touring the region, Arbuckle said there are fields where the standing water has caused or will soon cause significant damage to corn and other crops.
“Corn doesn’t like to have wet feet. It needs moisture but it doesn’t like to be standing in water,” she said.
“(But) with the extreme amount of water that has been on the fields, any crop (type) it will be hard for it to get through extended periods of standing water.”
