The wet weather has slowed things down a bit out in the fields, but not by much.
According to the July 12 Alberta Crop Report, significant precipitation in the North West region has led to some crop acres flooding. The sunshine in the forecast, however, is being very much welcomed. The Province reports that, because of the excess moisture, some fields have become saturated and crops are starting to yellow, notably barley, oats, and dry peas.
Spring cereals are mostly at the beginning of the head emergence stage of development, which is slightly behind normal. 63 per cent of canola and 71 per cent of dry peas are in flower, while 37 per cent of canola and 27 per cent of dry peas are still in the rosette stage.
Now that the wet June is in the past, haying is underway. 11 per cent of haying in the region is complete, which is behind the 5-year average of 40 per cent. Yield is estimated at 1.5 tons per acre, compared to the 5-year average of 1.9 tons per acre. Hay quality is rated at 89 per cent good or excellent.
Surface soil moisture is currently rated at 4 per cent poor, 27 per cent fair, 53 per cent good, and 6 per cent excellent.
When compared to the rest of the province, 76.1 per cent of crops in the northwest are said to be in good to excellent condition, compared to the provincial average of 74.5 per cent.
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