Manitoba planting is now nearing halfway complete, but still slightly behind the five-year average pace.
Tuesday’s crop report pegged planting across the province at 47% done, up 17 points from the previous week. That is comfortably ahead of 25% last year but trails the average by 5 points.
Producers are planting a variety of crops based on soil and weather conditions, the report said, adding that soil temperatures are adequately warm and the seeding of more sensitive crop types such as soybeans has begun.
Spring wheat and barley are sitting at 77% complete across the province with the Central region being the most advanced at 85% complete. Early planted fields are in the 3 to 4 leaf stage. Canola and sunflower planting are at 20% and 26% complete across the province, with soybeans at 34% done. Peas are more advanced at 90% done, although less than half of the peas have been seeded in the Interlake region due to wet conditions.
Warmer temperatures and recent precipitation have benefited hay and pastures, the report said, adding grasses and forages have noticeable growth.
Nearly all creeks, streams, dugouts, and sloughs in the province have refilled. For the most part cattle are still being fed close to their winter-feeding area or on a holding / sacrificial pasture until turned out. Producers are checking their fences and carrying out necessary maintenance work ahead of the grazing season.
Southwest:
Rainfall on Monday brought a significant pause to seeding activities in the early parts of the week. Brandon and its surrounding areas received 10-15mm of rain, with much of this precipitation occurring in the northern parts of the region. Southern areas such as Souris, Deloraine, and Melita received only 2-4mm of rain, allowing producers in these regions to proceed with seeding.
Throughout the past week, daytime temperatures ranged from 15 to 20 degrees C. Overall seeding progress in the region is about 45-50% complete. Some producers are slightly ahead depending on their field conditions. Cereal seeding is estimated to be 70 to 80% complete, soybeans are at 30-40% and pea seeding is 80-90% complete. Canola seeding has also begun in certain areas, with 5-10% complete. Grain corn is 60% completed. Soybeans have been planted, as indicated by the presence of land rollers in the fields. Sunflower planting is expected to commence for most growers this week. Most wheat, barley, and oat crops have been seeded, and cereals are beginning to emerge, while peas have already emerged.
Northwest
Mixed weather this week brought slower progress across the region. Scattered showers were enough to stop some seeding however access to some fields was still possible. There were some reports of hail in localized areas, along with precipitation. Highest accumulated precipitation amounts were in Reedy Creek and The Pas with 67 and 59mm, respectively.
Overall seeding progress in the region is about 40-45% complete. Field pea seeding continues with progress approximately 90% complete. Earliest seeded field peas are emerging. Spring wheat seeding continues and is approximately 75% complete. Earliest seeded wheat has emerged and is growing nicely. Barley and oat seeding is approximately 30% complete. Canola seeding is 25% and soybean is 15% complete.
Central
The past week had several rainfall events, with some being accompanied by lightning and high winds. A particularly notable storm passed through the RMs of Morris and Montcalm on Thursday night generating weather warnings. These rain events left soils too wet to access fields for field operations for several days. Seeding has progressed with spring wheat, barley, and oats at 90% complete. Many of the early seeded cereals are at the three to four leaf stage. Field peas are at 98%, soybeans at 40% and canola at 30% complete, with some of the earliest planted canola at the cotyledon stage. Sunflower seeding progress is at 35%, and corn at 70% complete.
The proportion of each crop seeded varies greatly at the local level across the region, with percentage of crops in the ground generally lower in the north of the Central region, and higher in the south.
Eastern
Rainfall accumulations across the Eastern region last week ranged from 20 to over 50mm. Rainfall occurred on most days during the reporting period and varied from intermittent drizzle to severe storms that included heavy downpours and large amounts of hail in localized areas. Rainfall amounts were noted as highly variable, even over short distances, leading producers to monitor their land carefully to avoid missing opportunities for seeding or field work. Standing water remains evident in some fields across most parts of the region.
Given the current weather forecast for the upcoming week, producers are pulling out all the stops to get more acres seeded. Partial fields are being seeded and seeding in less-than-ideal seedbed conditions is occurring. Retailers have noted that some customers are modifying their seeding plans in response to the weather conditions.
Overall, spring seeding was around 55% complete across the region. Individual producer progress varies significantly with some not started and others over 80% complete. Approximately 85% of spring wheat, oat and barley acres are in the ground. Very early seeded wheat is in the two to three leaf stage and in good condition. Later seeded crops range from emergence to the one leaf stage. About 75% of corn acres has been planted. Some corn and field pea emergence has been noted. Approximately 40% of soybean acres, 50% of sunflower acres and 30% of canola acres were planted across the region last week with some canola emergence noted. As producers wrap up spring cereal and corn seeding, their focus has shifted to oilseed crops.
Interlake:
The Interlake region continues to experience wet, cloudy, and rainy weather conditions. There were scattered showers throughout the week, with much variability in rainfall amounts. Most areas in the South Interlake including Clandeboye, Teulon and Woodland received about 15-18mm. Rainfall accumulation across the North Interlake region was less than 5mm. Most locations in the South Interlake region have adequate moisture conditions with standing water in low areas.
Limited seeding progress this week due to wet conditions. Overall seeding progress is about 30% complete depending on location and field conditions. Seeding has stalled out since Tuesday afternoon rains in the South Interlake region. Seeding progress is further advanced in the South Interlake with corn seeding estimated at 60%, soybeans at 15%, peas at 40% and spring cereals at 40%. With soil conditions improving, more seeding progress is expected in the northern parts of the Interlake.
