Crop report says many farmers in need of rain, mild temperatures

A dry spell has some farmers in Saskatchewan concerned.

According to the weekly crop report from the Ministry of Agriculture, farmers in areas of the province that haven’t had significant amounts of rain are hoping for precipitation soon as crops start to deteriorate due to the heat.

The report said the hot, dry weather has sped up crop development across the province, with 30 per cent of the fall cereals, 22 per cent of the spring cereals, 22 per cent of the oilseed crops and 19 per cent of the pulse crops ahead of normal development for this time of year.

“A general rain and mild temperatures are needed to avoid continued rapid maturation,” the report said. “Crops in the west-central region, where conditions remain very dry, are the most advanced while the east-central region has most crops rated as normal. Crop condition varies widely across the province, ranging from poor to excellent condition.”

The relative lack of rain also has affected the province’s topsoil moisture. The cropland topsoil moisture rating is one per cent surplus, 53 per cent adequate, 34 per cent short and 12 per cent very short, while hay and pasture land topsoil moisture is considered one per cent surplus, 41 per cent adequate, 37 per cent short and 21 per cent very short.

With haying underway, livestock producers who haven’t seen rain are reporting their crops are producing a lower-than-average yield, but the quality provincewide is rated as 20 per cent excellent, 63 per cent good, 13 per cent fair and four per cent poor.

Some crops were damaged this week by heat, dry winds, drought, grasshoppers, gophers, flooding and hail.

“Gophers have become a serious problem in many municipalities across the province, with some producers stating that they have lost large portions of their fields to the rodents,” the report said. “Those who have been negatively impacted by flooding and hail are still assessing whether their crops will bounce back.”