Warm weather welcomed by farmers in Sask.

After a wet October, unseasonably warm weather has farmers making up for lost time.

Rain, snow and a lack of sunshine caused delays for farmers. But with temperatures expected in the teens, farmers are hoping to harvest as much as they can before the next snowfall.

Todd Lewis is a farmer in Gray, Sask., 20 minutes southeast of Regina. He said he’s harvested 80 per cent of his crop and is hoping to finish, weather permitting.

“What we have left over is canary seed and canola. They both happen to be standing so we’ve been pretty fortunate,” Lewis said, adding that October was “slow”.

“I think we only had two-and-a-half days we were able to work in October.”

Norm Hall, the president of the Agricultural Producers of Saskatchewan, said on average, 80 per cent of the crop has been harvested. But not for everyone.

“There are a lot of guys that are done, but there are a lot of pockets in the province that are 50 per cent or less done, so there are an awful lot of work that has to get done.”

Hall said warm weather in early November is not too late for producers.

“Any little drying is going to help and for us in the fall, it’s never too late because, you know, if you leave it out over winter, you’re going to lose volume, you’re going to lose quality and then you’re going to lose time in the spring when you’re trying to get the crop off and that just puts you in a whole bind for next fall.”

One challenge this late in the year is fewer daylight hours.

“The sun shines, everybody will certainly be making the most of the time they do have this time of year,” said Lewis. “The days will be shorter, of course.”

Hall encourages all farmers to be safe as they work to finish harvest this November.