Manitoba Agriculture is reporting that rain over the past week slowed the harvest and is impacting the quality and yields of crops still to be harvested in the province.
Sonia Wilson, an oilseed specialist with Manitoba Agriculture, says there were small opportunities for the harvest to move forward but there was quite a bit of rain received, especially in the northwest and parts of the central and eastern regions.
The majority of the cereals have been completed but there are still some fields left to be harvested so there will be an impact with the amount of rain that was received on yield or potential quality. In general, we’ve had quite good reports, especially on spring wheat of quality and yield but we’ll wait to hear from some of these later harvested fields. As well, as we’re turning to the canola harvest, especially if it was swathed and received a lot of this rainfall may have more seeds lost so could have an impact on yields as well. Overall, we are sitting at about 93 percent for spring wheat harvest across the province, with the northwest at only 85 percent at this point. That will definitely, with warmer temperatures over this next week, be the focus. Barley and oats are sitting at 89 and 84 percent each so again very close to being finished and canola, we’re sitting at about 45 percent, with the majority of harvest being done, at about 75 percent in the central, eastern and Interlake but the southwest and northwest just starting into the canola harvest.
~ Sonia Wilson, Manitoba Agriculture
Wilson says harvest is about 56 percent complete across the province so it did move forward a little over the past week.
