Manitoba
Recent rain events have provided localized reprieves from the extremely dry soil conditions of the past weeks, and has likely saved some crops. More rainfall in the coming weeks will be needed to support yield and crop improvement, but the edge has been taken off. That being said, the prolonged drought conditions have already had a lasting impact on winter cereals and spring wheat; some crops may have matured faster than typical due to drought stress, too.
As of June 15, flea beetle is causing severe issues across the province, and growers should scout regularly to determine if they’re closing in on action thresholds and consider insecticide applications.
Saskatchewan
As of June 14, topsoil moisture conditions have improved over previous weeks due to rainfall events. Heavy localized rainfall resulted in occasions of flooding and water pooling in low areas of some fields across the province. With the rain came extremely strong winds in some regions as well, resulting in damage to or loss of bins, buildings and crops. Areas of the province that only saw wind and no rain are becoming concerned about dry conditions.
Provincially, 78 per cent of pulse crops, 76 per cent of spring cereals, 70 per cent of fall cereals and 66 per cent of oilseed crops are at their normal stages of development for this time of year. However, the amount of crops behind the typical development stage for this time of year is in the double digits for each of the aforementioned categories.
Alberta
As of June 15, Alberta’s moisture conditions are split quite distinctly between the north and south. Precipitation over the past 30 days has been focused on the northern part of the province, with the upper half of the central region, the southern part of the Peace Region, the northeast and northwestern parts of Alberta seeing moderately to extremely high soil moisture. Conversely, soil moisture reserves in the southern parts of Alberta are moderately to extremely low. The majority of the Peace Region is also experiencing extremely low soil moisture conditions.
As of June 15, provincial crop growing conditions are rated as 82 per cent good to excellent, compared to the five-year average of 77 per cent and the 10-year average of 75 per cent.
