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Latest Snowmelt Will 'Help Kickstart The Crop'

With snow blanketing much of the Prairies this week, farmers are now waiting to see how much of that moisture will soak into the fields.
 
Anne Kirk is a cereal specialist with Manitoba Agriculture & Resource Development.
 
"The snowfall is definitely a huge blessing for people. Anyone that got snow, I think it was very welcome because soil conditions were fairly dry prior to the snowfall. It really just depends on where you are located. Anywhere from say 25-30 cm down to 7 cm is what I've heard. In general, it's a 10 to 1 ratio so people that got 25 cm of snow that would be about an inch of water."
 
Kirk says the only downfall of the snow is that some of it may have blown off the field.
 
Winter wheat will also benefit from the moisture, according to Alex Griffiths with Ducks Unlimited.
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Seed Storage: Protecting Quality from Harvest to Planting

Video: Seed Storage: Protecting Quality from Harvest to Planting

Protecting seed quality starts in the field and continues through storage until planting — that was the focus of the Spud Smart–NAPSO webinar with Leroy Salazar, Amanda Wakasugi and Bill Crowder. Speakers stressed that vine kill timing, harvest conditions (soil moisture, pulp temperature), and minimizing mechanical damage set the stage for successful storage; modern buildings, calibrated sensors, VFD-controlled airflow,

rapid field-heat removal, and tight temperature uniformity then preserve seed quality. Ongoing monitoring for hot spots, condensation and early issues, plus sanitation and variety-specific handling, keep losses low and seed viable for shipping or cutting.