Province expects heavy rainfall, weekend flurries
By Brian Hess
Farms.com
Ontario cash-croppers are eagerly waiting for better weather and are voicing concerns about potential yield losses.
Persistent rainfall has flooded parts of the province, with Ottawa recording 68 mm (2.67 inches) of rain yesterday.
Conditions are set to continue for the near future. Weather forecasts are calling for steady rain after a short break tomorrow. Snow is predicted to hit many parts of Ontario by Sunday.
Heavy flooding and cold temperatures have producers sweating over potential yields.
“Due to the weather we have been experiencing lately, it will be very difficult to get the corn crop planted on schedule,” Tony Sachs, a corn producer in Grey County, said today in an interview.
“It currently looks like we will be more than a week behind with seeding. That could make a difference of two to three bushels per acre.”
The wet and delayed spring may bring back memories of 2011. That year, for example, the Kitchener-Waterloo area had 136.5 mm (5.37 inches) of precipitation in April. Hamilton had a stretch of 18 days that featured only one dry day, according to Environment and Climate Change Canada.
This rain delay will give producers a chance to prepare planters and precision equipment for when fields dry up.