Seeding three-quarters complete, but some areas won’t be done in 2022

Low areas in some Saskatchewan fields won’t be seeded this year because of standing water.

In the weekly crop report, the Ministry of Agriculture said a number of farmers in the southeast and east-central regions have decided they can’t seed some fields due to water left over after spring snow and rainstorms.

Provincially, 76 per cent of the crop acres in the province have been seeded, up from 52 per cent last week but well behind the five-year average of 93 per cent for this time of year.

Producers in the southwest are the furthest ahead, with 97 per cent of the crop in the ground. Farmers in the west-central (95 per cent) and northwest (93 per cent) regions also are nearly done, but those in the southeast (64 per cent), northeast (60 per cent) and east-central (50 per cent) areas are well behind schedule.

Across the province, 96 per cent of lentils and chickpeas, 93 per cent of field peas, 91 per cent of durum, 79 per cent of canary seed, 75 per cent of spring wheat, 69 per cent of barley, 66 per cent of canola, 65 per cent of flax and 51 per cent of oats have been seeded.

“Emergence has been reported to be slow in areas of the southwest and west-central where moisture is lacking,” the report said. “In the southeast and east-central, however, emergence has been slow due to cool weather and an overabundance of moisture.”

Cropland topsoil moisture in Saskatchewan is rated as 16 per cent surplus, 56 per cent adequate, 19 per cent short and nine per cent very short, while hay and pasture land topsoil moisture is rated as seven per cent surplus, 60 per cent adequate, 19 per cent short and 14 per cent very short.

Some crops in the province were damaged during the week by flooding, drought, flea beetles and gophers.