Photo: File

Mustard crops in good condition despite hail, prices squeezed

CNS Canada – Western Canada’s mustard crops are in mostly good condition, one industry participant says, while new-crop prices for the commodity have moved lower. “I would say throughout the growing area it really looks quite good, almost exceptional as an average,” said Walter Dyck, general manager, seed division at Olds Products. He added that rain has […] Read more

Saskatchewan crops developing normally

Saskatchewan Agriculture crop report for the week ending July 18

Click here for the full provincial report by district. Livestock producers continue with haying operations throughout the province, although frequent rain and high humidity have slowed progress. Twenty-two per cent of the hay crop has been cut and 28 per cent is baled or put into silage. The five year average (2011-2015) for hay progress […] Read more


Saskatchewan orders drainage into Quill Lakes stopped

Saskatchewan property owners draining land into the overflowing Quill Lakes in the east-central part of the province without prior approvals are being ordered to close those drains. The provincial government’s Water Security Agency (WSA) on Thursday said it would invoke new drainage regulations passed last fall and require all unapproved drainage works flowing into the […] Read more

(WeatherFarm.com)

Soggy conditions stress Saskatchewan’s crops

CNS Canada –– Crops were hit hard by rain in many parts of the province during the period of July 5-11, according to a report from the Saskatchewan government. Lloydminster, Estevan and Carrot River were just a few of the communities hit hardest by the precipitation. In some cases, areas in eastern and southern regions […] Read more


Rainfall for July 13, 2016 as of 6:40 p.m. CT. (CoCoRaHS.org)

Storms trim potential for big Prairie crops

Reuters — Heavy rain and strong winds are likely to curb the potential for Western Canada’s crops, government officials said, but the harvest may still be bigger than average. Pockets across Saskatchewan, Canada’s biggest wheat- and canola-growing province, received as much as five inches of rain, strong winds and hail since Sunday. The storms flattened […] Read more

Chicago oats rally with Prairie rains, for now

CNS Canada — Oat prices at the Chicago Board of Trade have advanced as rain soaks Canada’s crops, but one U.S. analyst doesn’t expect those gains to hold. Close to half of Canada’s seeded oat area is in Saskatchewan, Statistics Canada data shows, and some parts of the province have seen heavy rains and flooding. […] Read more


(Dave Bedard photo)

Saskatchewan names new deputy ag minister

A promotion for Saskatchewan’s deputy minister of agriculture leads to a promotion for one of the ministry’s assistant deputies. Doug Moen, who’s leaving his post as deputy minister to Premier Brad Wall at the end of June, on Friday announced Rick Burton as the province’s new deputy minister of agriculture, effective July 1. As the […] Read more



(Canada Beef Inc. photo)

Saskatchewan wheat crop enters crucial phase

CNS Canada –– Freezing temperatures are raising tensions for wheat growers in Saskatchewan as this year’s crop looks to survive a late blast of winter weather. The mercury dipped below 0 C in Saskatchewan on Thursday morning and Friday morning. Speaking Thursday afternoon, a regional crop specialist with the Saskatchewan Ministry of Agriculture, Shannon Friesen, […] Read more

Studies in three Prairie provinces used covers to block rainfall and simulate various levels of drought.

Stocking rates key to climate change adjustment

Low defoliation rates and leaving lots of litter are best for coping with weather variations from year to year

Fast and hard? Slow and easy? And how many animals per acre? Stocking and defoliation rates are a complex and even controversial issue, and depend a lot on the weather. Climate change could make them even more complex. To get a better idea on how producers should respond, Edward Bork and a team from the […] Read more