Reading Time: 6 minutes For many western Canadian farmers this is the fourth consecutive year with harvest progress seriously stymied by weather issues. Fall rains and snows have resulted in significant loss of crop quality and/or an increased reliance on costly drying of crops in each of those years. For some farmers, inclement weather has even resulted in crops […] Read more
How farmers can adapt to the new weather abnormal
The stable weather patterns of the ’80s and ’90s are gone, so we ask three climate scientists how to farm when the weather is unreliable
Corn harvest a struggle for three U.S. states
Reading Time: 2 minutes MarketsFarm — With a significant amount of corn still in the fields on the U.S. northern Plains, the harvest may be grinding to a halt, according to MarketsFarm analyst Bruce Burnett. In particular, Burnett noted, the corn harvest has been further slowed by a propane shortage, which has caused issues for farmers trying to acquire […] Read more
Alberta harvest likely finished for 2019 in some regions
Reading Time: 2 minutes MarketsFarm – Alberta farmers managed to make some progress despite trying conditions of cold temperatures mixed with snow and rain, including some hail, according to the province’s latest weekly crop report. For the week ended Nov. 5, approximately 88.0 per cent of all Alberta crops were in the bin. That’s up from 80.9 per cent […] Read more
Difficult Manitoba harvest nearing its end
Reading Time: 2 minutes MarketsFarm – In the latest and last weekly crop report for 2019 from Manitoba Agriculture, issued Nov. 5, the overall harvest reached 89 per cent complete province-wide However, it has continued to be a very tough slog for farmers as they contend with muddy fields, in which equipment has left deep ruts. In some areas, […] Read more
Poor weather continues to hamper Alberta harvest
Reading Time: < 1 minute Snow, rain and cold winds continued to hamper harvest operations in Alberta during the week ended Oct. 29, according to the latest provincial crop report. Total harvest progress across the province was pegged at 81 per cent done, which was up eight points from the previous week. Southern Alberta was farthest along, at 95 per […] Read more
Hail, storm damage to crops during September, October
Reading Time: < 1 minute Despite temperatures largely below normal for September and October, there were some instances of hail damage to crops in Manitoba and Saskatchewan. The Canadian Crop Hail Association (CCHA) said there were 53 cases of hail damage – as well as storm damage – in the two provinces. In Manitoba, storms that struck between Sept. 28 […] Read more
Manitoba’s sunflower crop under threat from weather
Reading Time: < 1 minute MarketsFarm — Manitoba’s sunflower crop has been compromised by the snow that fell over Thanksgiving weekend, but it’s not yet clear what percentage of the crop will be impacted. Before the snow fell, windy and rainy weather took a toll on the sunflower crop. The soil was oversaturated to the point that sunflower roots couldn’t […] Read more
Pulse weekly outlook: Early snow hurts edible bean prospects
Reading Time: 2 minutes MarketsFarm — An early snow storm hit key edible bean growing regions of Manitoba and the northern U.S. hard, with a large portion of the crop in the region now facing an uncertain future. “It is unprecedented what’s happened at this point,” said Tim Courneya, executive vice-president of the Northarvest Bean Growers Association, which represents […] Read more
Angry farmers cause Dutch police to close off parliament square
Reading Time: 2 minutes The Hague | Reuters — Police in the Dutch city of The Hague closed its central parliament square on Wednesday to keep out farmers protesting over what they see as attempts to blame them for nitrogen pollution. Thousands of irate farmers had driven tractors to The Hague hours earlier in their third large protest in […] Read more
Wet fall raises risk of Manitoba spring flood
Reading Time: < 1 minute MarketsFarm — Manitoba’s Red River Valley is very wet heading into the winter freeze, but it’s still too early to say if the saturated soils will lead to flooding in the spring, according to provincial forecasters. The Manitoba government on Wednesday took the unprecedented step of opening the Red River Floodway, marking the first time […] Read more
A message from April Stewart, Country Guide's Associate Editor
