Agriculture Weather & Forecast

Planting corn in south-central Manitoba in May 2014. (Co-operator photo by Allan Dawson)

Cold, soggy spring delaying seeding on Prairies

By Rod Nickel May 14, 2014

Reading Time: 2 minutes Winnipeg | Reuters — Crop planting in Western Canada has fallen well behind the usual pace as cool, wet weather idles farmers. Just six per cent of the overall crop was planted as of Monday, down from last year’s 10 per cent and well off the norm of around one-quarter seeded by this time of […] Read more

Crops, Weather

Prairies expected to stay cool in May

By Dave Sims May 14, 2014

Reading Time: 2 minutes CNS Canada –– Over the next month, Prairie producers can expect to see more of the cool, wet weather that has afflicted much of Western Canada so far this spring, according to a weather expert. “We’ll keep a cooler bias relative to normal over these next few weeks. So the drying rates will be a […] Read more

Cereals, Crops, Weather, Winter Wheat

Prairie winter wheat in good shape, analyst says

By Phil Franz-Warkentin May 13, 2014

Reading Time: 2 minutes CNS Canada — Winter wheat crops across Western Canada are generally in good shape, according to a CWB analyst, although the lateness of the spring thaw will also push back the harvest in many areas. “The winter wheat is in reasonably good shape,” said Bruce Burnett, a CWB weather and crops specialist. Emergence and moisture […] Read more

Crops, Reuters, Weather

U.S. farmers notch best planting week of 2014, USDA says

By Mark Weinraub May 12, 2014

Reading Time: 2 minutes Chicago | Reuters — U.S. farmers seeded 30 per cent of their corn acreage during the past week, putting them ahead of the typical pace, as a window of dry weather allowed farmers in major production states such as Iowa, Illinois and Indiana to make huge advances in the field. The U.S. Agriculture Department’s weekly […] Read more

Crops, Markets, Reuters, Weather

U.S., world soybean supplies on the rise, USDA reports

By Ros Krasny May 9, 2014

Reading Time: 3 minutes Washington | Reuters — The United States and the world will be awash in soybeans in 2014-15, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said on Friday, in a report that also gave its first survey-based readout of the struggling winter wheat crop. Following the report, Chicago wheat futures fell about 1.5 per cent despite a lower-than-expected […] Read more

A field awaits action near Livelong, Sask., about 110 km east of Lloydminster. (Lisa Guenther photo)

Crops, Weather

Guenther: How cold is too cold for soil at seeding?

By Lisa Guenther May 7, 2014

Reading Time: 2 minutes Spring snow may have unleashed a litany of complaints among Saskatchewan residents — but has also brought relief to parched soils in the province’s northwest. Errin Tollefson, an agronomist with Cavalier Agrow at Medstead, Sask., about 170 km west of Prince Albert, said last fall was the driest she’s seen in her 10 years of […] Read more

Crops, Reuters, Weather

Rising CO2 levels may cut nutrient levels in crops: study

By Will Dunham May 7, 2014

Reading Time: 3 minutes Washington | Reuters — Rising levels of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere may cut the nutritional quality of some of the world’s most important food crops, researchers reported Wednesday after conducting experiments simulating conditions expected by mid-century. The amounts of two important nutrients, zinc and iron, were found to be lower in wheat, rice, […] Read more

Crops, Spring Wheat, Weather

Spring wheat seeding still delayed in N.D.

May 7, 2014

Reading Time: 2 minutes CNS Canada — Seeding of spring wheat in North Dakota and Montana continued to be very slow during the week ended May 4, due to ongoing cool, wet conditions, a report from the North Dakota Wheat Commission said. As of Sunday, only about five per cent of the spring wheat crop was seeded in North […] Read more

Barley, Crops, Weather

Malting barley expected to see slow price surge

By Dave Sims May 6, 2014

Reading Time: 3 minutes CNS Canada — A projected decrease in Canadian malt barley acreage in 2014 could lead to price increases by the spring of 2015, according to an analyst in Alberta. Darren Smith of RMI Analytics in Calgary said exports in the barley market have been fairly light recently, due to logistics problems gripping rail transportation — […] Read more

Crops, Markets, Reuters, Weather

U.S. grains: Wheat advances as Plains sizzle; corn turns higher

By Julie Ingwersen May 6, 2014

Reading Time: 3 minutes Chicago | Reuters — U.S. wheat futures rose to their highest in 13 months on Tuesday, led by the Kansas City market as the southern U.S. Plains wheat belt remained in the grip of sizzling heat and dryness. Corn followed wheat higher but soybeans fell for a second straight session as large South American soy […] Read more

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