WINNIPEG, Aug. 15 – Farmers on the Canadian Prairies can expect decent weather for this harvest season, according to Drew Lerner, meteorologist and founder of WorldWeather Inc. He said most farmers will experience periodic showers but shouldn’t be subjected to the continual drizzles and sheets of rain that caused heartaches last year. “Most of the […] Read more
Weather
Many farmers should find reason to cheer harvest weather forecast
Warm harvest weather doesn’t mean grain spoilage issues disappear
Prairie farmers hoping for a dry, warm harvest will still need to pay close attention to grain condition when it comes off the field. Even dry grain can be prone to spoilage if harvest temperatures are too high and hot grain is not cooled down quickly after it has been binned. “Minimizing the risk of […] Read more
U.S. weather forecaster sees El Niño unlikely through 2017-2018 winter
Aug 10 (Reuters) – A U.S. government weather forecaster said on Thursday there were no active El Niño or La Niña patterns, and neutral conditions were favoured in the Northern hemisphere through the 2017-18 winter. However, the chances of neutral conditions were likely to fall from about 85 percent between July and September to 55 […] Read more
Smaller harvest likely to take longer
Variable crop quality between northern and southern regions expected to cause headaches for grain companies
Farmers and grain companies are preparing for a prolonged harvest and a below-average crop. Provincial specialists are forecasting smaller than usual crops in Alberta and Saskatchewan because of hot and dry conditions. That is a view shared by the Western Grain Elevator Association, which is forecasting a 60 million tonne harvest in Western Canada, down […] Read more
‘This is what they mean by dry land farming’
Never, it seems, have a few tenths of rain made so many people so happy. Aug. 1 brought as much as seven-tenths, about 18 millimetres, to parts of southwestern and south- central Saskatchewan, sending people to social media with photographs and comments of relief. The first decent rain in more than a month still won’t […] Read more
Manitoba soybeans welcome recent rain
Rains this week that brought 10 to 25 millimetres of precipitation to most of southern Manitoba should aid soybeans. Overall the crop is looking decent, but more rain is needed to maximize yields. “You want those August rains during the pod filling stage. Right now, we definitely need some more (rains),” said Cassandra Tkachuk, Manitoba […] Read more
The big dry
Relentless heat continued to take a toll on crops in western and southern Saskatchewan this week, turning what might have been an above average harvest into one that will be average at best in some areas and below average in others. In southwestern Saskatchewan, daytime temperatures peaked at more than 38 C July 30, capping […] Read more
Alberta conditions fall but provincial yield outlook average
Saskatoon newsroom Alberta crop condition ratings declined a further four points this week to 60 percent good-excellent, compared to the five-year average of 74 percent, the Alberta Agriculture crop report said July 28. Hot, dry weather continues to cover the south region and is now affecting significant portions of the east half of the central […] Read more
Drought slams Sask crop – report
Saskatchewan crops deteriorated again and fields are ripening quickly in dry conditions, according to the weekly Department of Agriculture crop report for July 24. The report issues crop conditions every two weeks and this report showed deterioration, particularly in durum and lentils, given their concentration in the south where the drought is most severe. The […] Read more
Heat and drought rewriting 2017 wheat story
(Editor’s note: the print version of the story has incorrect information about the amount of rain in Saskatchewan. The story has been corrected here.) My car thermometer hit 38 C July 16 as I drove an area around Moose Jaw, Sask., although Environment Canada said the official high was 34.9 C. Whatever it was, it […] Read more
