Seeding underway in Central Alberta

Conditions of tame hay are reported as 11 per cent poor, 13 per cent fair, 73 per cent good, and 3 per cent excellent.

Meantime, unseasonably cool and snowy conditions persisted in the majority of Alberta through the month of April. While the additional moisture was welcome, persistent cool conditions resulted in a later start to seeding across the province.

Seeding has progressed the furthest in the South and Central regions as fields dried through April. In the North East and North West regions, snow melt is ongoing and seeding is expected to start this week.

The Peace region’s snowpack has only begun to melt, and seeding is expected to begin in the southern areas of the region, where it is anticipated that fields are dry enough to support equipment.

Seeding progress for all crops by region (5-year avg) is reported at 26 (37) per cent in the South region, 4 (12) per cent in the Central region, 0 (3) per cent in the North East region, 0 (3) per cent in the North West region and 0 (6) per cent in the Peace region.

Fall seeded crop conditions are updated in the first crop report of the season. The percentage of provincial fall seeded crops reported as in good to excellent condition is 67 per cent, compared to the 5-year average of 65 per cent.

Regionally, fall crops in good to excellent condition (5-year average) is 74 (70) per cent in the South region, 70 (78) per cent in the Central region, 69 (65) per cent in the North East region and 30 (16) per cent in the North West region. No reports were received for the Peace region.

The first crop report of the season provides an update on soil erosion over the spring season. The late season snow melt is resulting in a greater area reporting soil water erosion than in previous years and a lower area than normal reporting soil wind erosion.

Provincial soil erosion due to water runoff (5-year average) is 37 (41) per cent none, 32 (54) per cent light, 29 (6) per cent moderate, and 2 (0) per cent heavy. Provincial soil erosion due to winds (5-year average) is 22 (28) per cent none, 65 (55) per cent light, 13 (17) per cent moderate and 0 (1) per cent heavy.

Late spring precipitation has contributed to supportive soil moisture conditions across the province. Provincially, surface soil moisture (sub-surface soil moisture) is rated at 68 (60) per cent good to excellent, with regional moisture conditions at 67 (50) per cent in the South region, 74 (66) per cent in the Central region, 74 (56) per cent in the North East region, 48 (55) per cent in the North West region and 60 (85) per cent in the Peace region.

Growth conditions for pasture and tame hay are favorable in the South, Central and North West regions. Meanwhile, persistent cool temperatures in the North East and Peace regions have limited growth.

Provincially, pasture growth is rated 61 per cent good to excellent, while tame hay is at 55 per cent rated good to excellent. The percentage of producers with adequate to surplus forage is 67 per cent, with 76 per cent having adequate to surplus feed grain supplies. These values are lower than the respective 5-year averages of 71 and 77 per cent, due to delayed pasture access in the Northern regions.

by AFSC/Government of Alberta

Seeding underway in Central Alberta

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