Manitoba farmers more than half done spring seeding: crop report

Spring planting in Manitoba reached 55 per cent complete as of yesterday (Tue), according to the province's weekly crop report.

That’s 30 points behind where Manitoba farmers were a year ago, and 13 points back of the five-year average.

Southwest

Welcome rain over the past week slowed seeding operations, but producers still made good progress getting crops into the ground.

Most northern areas, including Hamiota, Russell, Erickson, and Neepawa, received good amounts of rain and are close to normal moisture levels for this time of year.

However, southern areas such as Deloraine, Souris, and Boissevain are still below normal rainfall levels.

Daytime temperatures are returning to normal, but nighttime temperatures remained below zero during the past week.

The forecast for the coming days looks promising for emerging crops.

Several producers returned to the field last Monday and had a steady week of planting until Thursday, when several areas received rain in varying amounts over the weekend.

Winter wheat and fall rye growth improved with the warmer weather, and producers are preparing for in-crop weed control.

Spring wheat and barley seeding are approximately 75% complete, with areas north of Highway 16 showing the greatest progress.

Early seeded wheat and barley are emerging and are at the one to two leaf stage.

Oat seeding is around 60% complete, while canola seeding is approximately 35% complete.

Many producers are waiting for more favourable air temperatures before seeding canola.

Corn seeding is about 40% complete.

Soybean seeding is 40% complete.

Pea seeding is complete, and crops are emerging well.

Early seeded flax, soybeans, and canola have emerged and are entering the cotyledon stage.

Most other crops are either just emerging or are still being seeded.

Pre-emergent spraying continues, as recent rains and warmer weather have encouraged weed growth.

Many farms skipped burn off applications earlier in the month and are only now beginning those operations.

Northwest

A mixed week of weather allowed for some seeding progress and spring field operations to move ahead.

However, pockets of the region remain too wet to start, and progress has been delayed by frequent precipitation events.

Spring wheat seeding is underway across most of the region.

The earliest seeded wheat has started to emerge, while other fields are experiencing prolonged emergence due to cool soils.

Overall, spring wheat seeding is approximately 30% complete.

Field pea seeding is also underway, facing similar challenges as spring wheat.

Seeding is approximately 40% complete across the region, with a few of the earliest seeded fields beginning to emerge.

There has been a slow start to canola seeding in most areas of the Northwest region, as some producers are holding off to prioritize soybean seeding to accommodate the upcoming seeding deadline.

Canola seeding is approximately 5% complete.

Soybean seeding is approximately 5% complete across the region.

Winter wheat and fall rye are in mostly good condition, although some winterkill has been reported recently.

Recent warmer conditions have encouraged weed growth.

Herbicide applications are beginning to get underway as temperatures improve, although wet conditions may pose additional challenges.

(Manitoba Agriculture news release)