Crop District 8 – Hudson Bay, Tisdale, Melfort, Carrot River, Humboldt, Kinistino, Cudworth and Aberdeen areas;
Crop District 9AE – Prince Albert, Choiceland and Paddockwood areas
For the Period October 10 to 16, 2023
Producers in the northeast are remarking on an overall dry year, although soil moisture levels are not quite limiting yet. Harvest has wrapped up in the majority of the region, with only a few late maturing crops left standing. With the early season moisture and periodic rains throughout the growing season, many producers are pleased with the 2023 growing season overall.
Crop yields in the northeast are showing the benefits of sustained moisture this year. Producers are reporting crop yields above both the provincial average and the provincial 10-year average. The region was able to obtain the best yields this year with the moisture they received. Quality for the crops is within the top two categories for all crops. In some cases, crops were downgraded because of crop disease and insect damage. Sooty moulds moved into the region resulting in downgrading of harvested crops in some instances.
Moisture varied within the region, depending on location rainfall amounts were between 59 mm and 338 mm. Topsoil moisture is the least limited within the province, with 80 per cent of cropland having adequate moisture, 19 per cent is short and one per cent is very short. One per cent of hay and pastures have a surplus of moisture, 74 per cent have adequate moisture, 24 per cent are short and one per cent is very short.
Producers in the northeast are generally pleased with their overall winter feed supplies, and some have a surplus of hay, straw, and feed grain. Alfalfa hay fields yielded 1.94 tons per acre, brome/alfalfa yielded 1.93 tons per acre and green feed yielded 2.11 tons per acre. Average silage yield was reported at 7 tons per acre. Hay is of good quality overall. With some producer increasing the amount seeded, there is a projected three per cent increase of winter wheat acres in the region.
Producers are busy drying and marketing grain, performing fall operations on their fields and preparing machinery for winter. Producers are also marketing livestock and moving their animals home.