As of July 14, most spring cereals in the North West Region are reported as nearing the end of booting, as the flag leaf sheath is finishing opening.
That’s according to the latest crop report by the Agriculture Financial Services Corporation (AFSC) and the Government of Alberta.
The report says 86 per cent of canola and 84 per cent of dry peas are flowering.
In-crop herbicide and fungicide applications are being made where conditions allow, as the AFSC reports that some parts of the region received up to an inch of rain and some hail over the previous week.
Many areas also reported flooded-out acres. That’s also made putting up dry, quality hay a concern, as field access has been limited in areas and frequent rainfall is leaving short windows.
Tame hay growth conditions (five-year average) are rated as zero (15) per cent poor, 23 (34) per cent fair, 47 (40) per cent good, and 30 (11) per cent excellent.
Across the province, warm and windy weather conditions accelerated crop development, though excess moisture remains a challenge in many areas. Consistent with the previous week, provincial major crops were rated 64 per cent good-to-excellent, above the five-year average of 59 per cent, but below the 10-year average of 67 per cent.
South, Central and North East regions each changed by less than two per cent, though the government says the North West increased by two per cent and the Peace Region decreased by three per cent. Regionally, major crops rated good-to-excellent (five-year average) are 85 (53) per cent in the South, 81 (65) per cent in the Central Region, 52 (63) per cent in the North East, 31 (61) per cent in the North West and 55 (51) per cent in the Peace Region.
According to the report, canola (56 per cent) and oats (50 per cent) have the lowest provincial good-to-excellent rating as these crops struggle in areas with excess moisture (especially in the North West and North East), with reports noting the stress is causing thin fields and reduced vigour for canola.
The highest rated major crops are dry peas (72 per cent good-to-excellent), followed by spring wheat and barley, both at 69 per cent good-to-excellent. Pest pressures have been rated as over five per cent moderate for estimates of diamondback moths, lygus bugs and gophers in the South Region, root maggots and gophers in the Central and gophers in the North West. There have also been reports of over threshold level gophers in Central and North West regions ranging from six to 10 per cent, the AFSC notes.
On average, spring cereals are staging at the early stages of head emergence. Provincially, the most advanced cereal is durum, which is just beginning to flower, while oats are the least advanced cereal at the mid-booting stage. Looking at the provincial averages, the province says crops are still staging behind their historical averages, though warm weather this week helped advance them.
Spring cereals are most advanced in the South Region where they are beginning to flower, consistent with the historical average for the region. Late seeding in the Peace Region continues to impact spring cereals, which are currently in the middle of booting as compared to normally being in early flowering over the past five years.
Currently, 86 per cent of broadleaf crops are flowering, compared to the five- and 10-year average of 76 and 76 per cent. Officials say this is a significant increase from two weeks ago, as only eight per cent of broadleaves were flowering and instead 53 per cent were in rosette or had seven to 12 nodes.
The region with the least amount of crops flowering is the North East Region at 71 per cent, while the Central Region is at 92 per cent.
When it comes to moisture, surface soil moisture is rated 73 per cent good-to-excellent (one per cent poor, 16 per cent fair, 45 per cent good, 28 per cent excellent and 10 per cent excessive), down from 80 per cent last week. It’s reported that with a shift in the weather, surface soil moisture is actively showing signs of drainage.
Regionally, surface soil moisture rated good-to-excellent is rated (change from last week) 61 (-19) per cent in the South, 84 (-6) per cent in Central, 75 (-2) per cent in the North East, 60 (+5) per cent in the North West and 85 (-2) per cent in the Peace Region. Each region also remains above its five-year average.
Notably, the AFSC says the increase in good-to-excellent rated soil moisture in the North West comes from the decrease in excessive moisture. On June 30, this region was reported to have 55 per cent excessive soil moisture, which has now decreased to 40 per cent. This is still significantly above the five- and 10-year averages of two and 10 per cent, respectively.
The next lowest soil moisture rating was in the South Region, at 61 per cent, after a significant decrease (-19) from last week. The South Region remains rated above the five- and 10-year average of 39 and 46 per cent good-to-excellent.
Meantime, provincial sub-surface soil moisture decreased to 78 per cent good-to-excellent from 83 per cent good-to-excellent. The largest change in good-to-excellent surface soil moisture was the decrease of 17 per cent in the South Region, which is now rated at 56 per cent; however, all regions remain significantly above their historical averages. Significant moisture at this depth should support continued crop advancement as we move into the historically hotter months of July and August, the report notes.
Regarding pasture growth, provincial conditions rated good-to-excellent decreased from 82 to 79 per cent but remained significantly above the five- and 10-year averages of 45 and 56 per cent, respectively. Regional conditions changed between zero and three per cent, except in the South Region, which decreased eight per cent.
Tame hay conditions for the province were reportedly rated at 79 per cent good-to-excellent, down from 81 per cent last week and above the five- and 10-year average of 46 and 58 per cent. Regional tame hay rated as good-to-excellent (five-year average) was 69 (32) per cent in the South, 97 (57) per cent in the Central, 88 (41) per cent in the North East, 78 (51) per cent in the North West and 59 (45) per cent in the Peace Region.
Provincially, 26 per cent of first-cut hay is complete and is averaging 1.7 tons per acre. The AFSC says progress is highest in the South Region with 46 per cent of dryland complete, averaging 1.5 tons per acre. The highest dryland yield is currently in the Peace Region where 14 per cent of hay is cut and is averaging 1.9 ton per acre. Irrigated first-cut in the South is 62 per cent complete and is averaging 2.4 tons per acre.
The North West Region includes Drayton Valley, Barrhead, Leduc, Edmonton and Athabasca.
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