Prairie crop development ranges from normal to ahead of normal
The Canadian Wheat Board reports crop development across the Canadian prairies ranges from ahead of normal in Manitoba to normal in Saskatchewan and Alberta.
2012 has been characterized by an unusually early spring melt followed by warmer than normal early spring temperatures.
Bruce Burnett, the Canadian Wheat Board’s director of weather and market analysis says the crop went in a lot more quickly than normal in eastern Manitoba but heavy rains late in the planting season held up seeding in east, east central and parts of central Saskatchewan resulting in a couple million acres of unseeded cropland.
Again, regionally the yield potential in Manitoba itself looks very good.
We have some areas, mostly on the western side of the province, that got hurt by some of those rains that we had during the month of May and June and, although in most areas the crops got planted, we have seen some drowned out areas so the crops in those areas aren’t looking quite as good.
Our crops are about two to three weeks ahead of normal right now and certainly it looks like we’ll see some harvest activity on the winter wheats in July this year and also some spring wheats perhaps in late July and early August so crop development is ahead of normal in Manitoba.
For Alberta and Saskatchewan, I think you’d characterize by now as having normal crop development.
Of the temperatures in the western areas, we’re certainly below normal as a trend and those below normal temperatures have slowed the early growth of the crop.
Burnett says, with the exception of small dry spots in southeastern Manitoba and the Peace Region of Alberta, we have more than adequate moisture and some excess moisture in eastern Saskatchewan and parts of western Manitoba.
