(rdnewsNOW/Sheldon Spackman)

By rdnewsNOW Staff

Conditions As Of May 31, 2022

Seeding essentially complete throughout central Alberta

Jun 3, 2022 | 1:56 PM

Seeding is essentially complete in the Central Zone of Alberta.

That according to the latest Crop Report from Alberta Agriculture and Forestry and Rural Economic Development and Alberta Financial Services Corporation (AFSC).

The report indicates that 67 per cent of crops have now emerged. This is said to be one of only two regions where emergence is ahead of the five-year average.

Canola estimates show 56 per cent in the cotyledon stage and peas are 76 per cent in one-to-three node stage.

Post-emergent application has just started with five per cent of acres now sprayed. Pest infestations are minimal with only gophers (seven per cent) and flea beetles (one per cent) being reported over threshold.

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Surface soil moisture (sub-surface moisture in brackets) are said to be much more favorable than in the South. Ratings are 18 (17) per cent poor, 36 (38) per cent fair, 43 (40) per cent good and 3 (5) per cent excellent.

Pasture conditions are 80 per cent fair to good and tame hay is 83 per cent fair to good. Officials say this is largely comparable to this time last year when those ratings were 87 per cent and 83 per cent respectively.

Over the past eight days, the vast majority of Alberta cropland received less than 15mm of precipitation, with the drier South region reporting negligible to 10mm. A large portion of Central and South regions have six-month precipitation conditions from ‘low’ to ‘driest’, indicating precipitation shortfall frequencies of between once in six years to once in 50 years. Dry conditions in the South continue to be a key risk of the crop report for the province.

The South region’s significant moisture deficiency is now reported at 86 per cent fair to poor for surface soil moisture. Very notably, there are no excess moisture reports anywhere in the province this week. Soil moisture is largely good to excellent in the Peace region but decreases substantially heading south through the province.

The dry conditions have allowed some regions to largely complete spring seeding with the South, Central, and North East regions over 95 per cent complete and comparable to last year’s timeframe. The North West is marginally behind its five-year average completion rate, whereas wet conditions in the Peace have it nearly 20 per cent less complete than this time last year and also behind its five-year average.

Less than one per cent of total provincial land is reported as not likely to be seeded this year, indicating excessive unseeded acreage is not anticipated. Province-wide, 55 per cent of all crops have emerged, modestly behind the five-year average of 61 per cent. Oats, canola, dry peas, dry beans, and potatoes markedly delayed in emergence when compared to their respective five-year averages, whereas sugar beets, corn, and spring triticale have advanced emergence compared to five-year averages.

Pest reports are largely at historical normal levels.

Both pasture and hay reporting are regionally correlating to the above referenced soil moisture trends, with productive growth reported in the Peace and North regions but significantly poorer growth in the South.

Pasture weed growth is reported more significantly this spring than five-year and 10-year historical averages. Twenty-six per cent of pastures province-wide are reporting moderate to heavy weeds, compared to the five-year average of 14 per cent.