The harvest season is already beginning, and farmers are already pleased to see the crops returning good yields.
Mat Dennison, agronomist with Prairie Soil Services Ltd., said that cereal crops have already been harvested in most of the area. Oats and wheat are bringing in an average yield of 60 to 80 bushels, which is above average.
Canola swathing is beginning, but farmers are being cautious regarding their progress in that area.
“Disease pressure is quite high this year, and our farmers have noticed that while swathing,” he said.
Weather, on the other hand, has been drier than most of the summer. Aside from a few damp days, the sun and cool weather are helping farmers along. “Hopefully the weather will hold and the rain won’t come in,” Dennison said.
According to Saskatchewan Agriculture’s Weekly Crop Report issued for August 23 to 29, 18 per cent of crops have been combined, and 32 per cent is swathed or ready to straight-cut. This is slightly ahead of the five-year average of 17 per cent combined.
Harvest was furthest ahead in the southeast, where producers have 34 per cent of crops in bins, compared to 25 per cent in southwest Saskatchewan, 12 in the east central region, eight per cent in west central and five in the northwest, according to the Ministry of Agriculture.
About 92 per cent of winter wheat, 64 per cent of field peas, 40 per cent of lentils, 10 per cent of durum, 10 per cent of spring wheat and seven per cent of canola have been combined.
Pasture conditions are mainly good and excellent, though there is a chance of damage due to flooding, sclerotinia in canola, fusarium in wheat and durum, and bleaching in cereals and pulses.
