Farmers optimistic heading into spring seeding, agriculture minister says

It’s a busy season for farmers across the province as they gear up for spring seeding.

Saskatchewan Agriculture Minister Daryl Harrison said seeding will start at different times across Saskatchewan.

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“In the southwest there’s a few early adopters out there that are out in the fields already,” Harrison said during an appearance on the Evan Bray Show on Wednesday.

He said other farmers are having their equipment serviced ahead of spring seeding, while some fields in other parts of the province are still buried under a cover of snow.

Listen to Harrison’s full interview with Evan Bray:

Harrison said Saskatchewan has seen a fairly slow melt so far this spring, which has kept flooding to a minimum as most of the moisture soaks into the soil.

“There’s certainly some dry areas that can receive more moisture and would welcome that, and some of those areas can almost take a rain every other day and not be too wet, so it varies across the province,” he explained.

“Overall, I think everybody’s fairly optimistic about the moisture levels heading into spring seeding.”

Harrison said spring is an exciting time for farmers and ranchers alike.

“I think spring seeding and calving certainly gets everybody’s heart beating a little faster, and they’re really optimistic about the upcoming season. I always say that farmers and ranchers are eternal optimists, and I think that’s coming through loud and clear this spring,” he said.

“I don’t think there’s anyone out there that’s not excited about getting out into the fields or seeing the cows hit the ground. That part is good.”

Meanwhile, Harrison said, there are still concerns from farmers and ranchers about tariffs, particularly China’s 100 per cent tariffs on Canadian canola oil.