Crop District 1 – Carnduff, Estevan, Redvers, Moosomin and Kipling areas;
Crop District 2 – Weyburn, Milestone, Moose Jaw, Regina and Qu'Appelle areas;
Crop District 3ASE – Radville, Minton and Lake Alma areas
For the Period October 10 to 16, 2023
Early rains and moisture gave crops and pastures in the southeast a reservoir to pull from during the high temperatures this summer. While the moisture delayed seeding, many producers were happy to have it during the growing season and it led to higher yields in the area. Although moisture meddled with progress at times, harvest is now completed in the southeast with 98 per cent of the crop off for the year.
Yields in the southeast are generally higher than the provincial averages; regions that received early moisture and timely rains benefitted from that moisture. The majority of crops are rated as top quality in the region, with few crops being in the second quality category. The main decrease in quality was due to insect damage and drought conditions.
Precipitation this year was scattered throughout the region, with the amounts varying between 104 mm to 325 mm in the southeast. Topsoil moisture is evenly spread across the different moisture categories. Thirty-eight per cent of cropland has adequate topsoil moisture, 30 per cent is short and 32 per cent is very short. Similarly, four per cent of hay and pasture have a surplus of moisture, 34 per cent have adequate moisture, 31 per cent is short and 32 per cent is very short. Many producers are hoping for fall rains and heavy snowfall this winter to help with topsoil moisture before this spring.
With the limited fall moisture being seen in the region, fall seeded cereals are not being seeded right now, and the region is anticipating a decrease in winter wheat (six per cent) and fall rye (five per cent) this year.
Hay is of good to excellent quality this year, with alfalfa yielding an average 1.46 tons per acre, alfalfa/brome yielding 1.5 tons per acre and greenfeed yielding 1.84 tons per acre. Average silage yield is 6.3 ton per acre across the region. With the feed supplies in for the year, producers are now reporting that they have an adequate supply of feed for the winter.
Producers are busy working their fields before the ground freezes, applying fall fertilizers, post-harvest herbicides and controlling weed populations before the spring. Livestock producers are also working cattle, hauling feed, weaning calves and marketing cattle.