High temperatures and a lack of rain turned up the stress on Alberta crops this past week, although condition ratings are still above average.
Friday’s weekly crop report pegged the average condition of all crops in the province as of Tuesday at 74% good to excellent. That is down just a single point from two weeks earlier and above the five- and 10-year averages of 61% and 63%, respectively.
“While conditions are still rated above the five- and 10-year average provincially, crops are starting to show signs of heat stress like heat blast in canola, while other crops are coming out of flowering prematurely or dropping tillers,” the report said. “The effect of these hot conditions will be seen in the initial yield predictions in the coming weeks.”
Forecasts for more hot, dry weather the coming week will only add to the stress on crops in the crucial reproduction stages of development, the report added.
The spring wheat and durum crops were rated 73% and 82% good to excellent as of Tuesday, versus 79% for both two weeks earlier, while oats and barley came in at 70% and 73%, down from 75% and 78%.
The condition of the provincial canola crop was up 5 points from two weeks ago to 72% good to excellent, while peas improved 4 points to 79%. At 83% good to excellent, the mustard and flax crops both declined from 85%, while lentils dropped 2 points to 82% and dry beans fell 1 point to 94%. The chickpea crop was steady at 75%.
Precipitation over the last week was quite scattered. Some areas in the North East received up to 20 mm while many areas received no rain.
While surface soil moisture in some regions improved this past week, the report said sub-surface soil moisture decreased in all regions. Currently, the highest rated sub-surface soil moisture is in the Peace Region at 85% good to excellent, while the lowest is in the Central Region at only 20% good to excellent.
Given the drier conditions, the Central Region has the lowest average crop rating in the province at 64% good to excellent as of Tuesday, down sharply from 82% two weeks earlier. On the other hand, the average crop rating was up 6 points from two weeks ago in the South to 81%, while the North West gained 10 points to 78% and the North East was up 2 points to 72%. The average rating declined in the Peace, down 2 points to 73%.
Though there are many comments about crops progressing quickly, provincial crop staging is right on track with the five- and 10-year average. Spring cereals are just near the end of head emergence and 77% of all broadleaf crops are flowering and 17% are podding, which is slightly ahead of the historical average. Spring cereals are most advanced in the South and Central Region where they have just started flowering, while the other regions range between ½ and ¾ of heads emerged.
Region One: South (Strathmore, Lethbridge, Medicine Hat, Foremost)
• Hot and dry days caused significant growth in both crops and hay. Crops are currently rated as 82 per cent good to excellent, up from last week’s 77 per cent.
• Lots of moisture will be needed to fill heads in the coming weeks. Surface soil moisture rated good to excellent is currently at 49 per cent good to excellent, down from last week’s 62 per cent.
• Haying is in full swing as 70 per cent of dryland first cut and 82 per cent of irrigated first cut is complete. Yields are 1.5 and 2.6 tons per acre, respectively. Pasture that has not been grazed is beginning to turn and pasture condition that has already been grazed is dependent on rain in the near future.
Region Two: Central (Rimbey, Airdrie, Coronation, Oyen)
• Excessive heat has been hard on crops, affecting flowering/podding and dropping tillers. Conditions are now rated at 62 per cent good to excellent compared to 77 per cent last week.
• Some areas received spotty showers that helped surface soil moisture increase from 58 per cent good to excellent to 60 per cent. However, it was not enough to improve sub-surface soil moisture, which decreased from 29 per cent good to excellent to 20 per cent this week.
• The west central part of the region has received some showers, which has made baling cut hay difficult. However, 59 per cent of first cut hay has been baled, averaging 1.5 tons per acre.
Region Three: North East (Smoky Lake, Vermilion, Camrose, Provost)
• Due to heat, some crops have been prematurely coming out of flower and are showing signs of stress. Major crop conditions are rated as 72 per cent good to excellent, compared to 71 per cent last week.
• Hot and dry weather has ben constant all week, with a few areas reporting some hail. Surface soil moisture (sub-surface soil moisture) is currently rated as 79 (63) per cent good to excellent compared to last week at 76 (65) per cent.
• First cut hay is 74 per cent complete with many reports of strong yields averaging 1.6 acres per ton. Second growth will require moisture to ensure yields.
Region Four: North West (Barrhead, Edmonton, Leduc, Drayton Valley, Athabasca)
• Crops have been progressing fast due to hot weather stress and are starting to show signs of low soil moisture on hilltops. Currently, major crops are rated as 78 per cent good to excellent, up from last week’s 69 per cent.
• A few areas received showers this week but those were countered with multiple high temperature days. Surface soil moisture rated good to excellent decreased to 59 per cent from 70 per cent last week.
• First cut hay has been progressing fast with 87 per cent complete, averaging 1.5 ton per acre. Fields will need moisture to keep up with second cut, as will pastures to keep up with grazing cattle.
Region Five: Peace (Fairview, Falher, Grande Prairie, Valleyview)
• Crop conditions rated good to excellent decreased to 73 per cent from last week’s 74 per cent.
• Hot and dry weather all week with only a few showers that brought up to 8 mm did not benefit surface soil moisture, which dropped from 84 per cent good to excellent last week to 73 per cent this week.
• First cut hay is 62 per cent complete and averaging 1.3 tons per acre.
