Looking at the last 30 days, up to Tuesday, precipitation in Saskatchewan has been below to well below average, due in part to the heat in July.
This is according to a map of current agro-climate conditions of the Prairie region from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada.
A large diagonal area from southwestern Saskatchewan to the northeast were between less than 40 per cent of normal to around 60 to 85 per cent of normal. The northwest and a pocket of the west-central region had 85 to 115 per cent of normal rainfall, while the extreme southeast had 115 to more than 200 per cent of normal precipitation.
Manitoba's southwest region also had above to well above normal precipitation, while the rest of the province was in below to well below normal range.
An area south of Calgary, Alberta, had normal rainfall recorded over the last 30 days and the Edmonton area also had normal to above normal precipitation. The northwest region was a mix between below normal and normal levels.
This follows a similar trend with Ag Canada's Drought Monitor for July, which suggested the Prairies had below to well below precipitation.
This led to a large area north of La Ronge to be classified in severe drought with a smaller area in extreme drought, while in Alberta, Calgary and Red Deer were classified as abnormally dry.
Southern Alberta and southern Saskatchewan also had rainfall deficits and the highest temperature difference at 3 to 5 degrees above normal.
Trevor Hadwen, an agro-climate specialist with Ag Canada, says despite the hot and dry conditions, spring moisture carried agricultural land in the Prairies through the month.
"The agricultural region in the Prairies continues to be largely drought free, with just 2% of the region's agricultural landscape in drought," stated Hadwen. "However, soil moisture reserves declined quickly through July, with abnormally high temperatures and low precipitation."
But Hadwen notes northern Alberta and west-central Saskatchewan are two regions that seemed to avoid dry conditions last month, receiving "a bove normal precipitation, with many areas seeing saturated soils and flooding."
Hadwen says at the end of July, about 38 per cent of the Prairie region is considered abnormally dry or in drought, including 15.7 per cent of the region in drought, which is higher compared to June, when 1.5 per cent of the region was in drought.
