Although the last of Saskatchewan’s snowfall may have melted just days ago, that’s not stopping farmers from getting on the ground.
Todd Lewis Gray is farming south of Sask. Over the past 45 years and throughout their time in the field, they have faced arid conditions.
“The late 1980s were exceptionally dry,” Lewis recalled. “Even in the early 2000s we had some very dry years.”
In 2024, those dry conditions mean an earlier start to seeding for many growers across the province.
Normally Lewis aims for a May 1 start date — but on Friday, his family started seeding more than 10,000 acres of land for the season.
Lewis said, “These are some pretty big days where farmers are putting thousands of dollars in the ground… We certainly hope we have other days where we’re putting money back in the trash.”
Lewis said the way technology has advanced over the past two decades has allowed growers to start planting seeds earlier in the year and get better crops.
Latest news from Canada and around the world
As it happens, it will be sent to your email.
“In those dry years in the late ’80s, in this area south of the number one highway, we couldn’t really grow canola with the old varieties,” Lewis said. “Now it’s common to see canola in these areas and south of here as well.”
In southern Saskatchewan, very dry conditions exist following a winter with minimal snowfall and hardly any rain in the summer of 2023. Crop extension specialist Matthew Struthers said topsoil moisture levels could drop rapidly if rain doesn’t fall soon.
“The name of the game right now is moisture,” Struthers said. “If you have it, you’re fine. If you don’t, you’re hoping it will rain here soon. Producers are just hoping for good weather. “Hopefully, we’ll get some dark clouds and some rain here in the southwest.”
He further said that when it comes to early sowing, soil temperature is also very important.
“Depending on what crop you are planting and the danger of frost coming through the spring, the risk increases very quickly,” Struthers said. “But obviously, sometimes you just get the itch and you have to move on.”
“On the other hand, if you wait, you might extend your harvest season because that seed will have to work a lot harder to grow.”
As for Lewis, he’s hopeful rain will arrive soon, even if it delays the final days of seeding.
“We certainly won’t be sad about rain delays this spring if we get a few rains in a week or ten days and germination is halted. that’ll be fine.”
©2024 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.