Manitoba crop conditions are generally improved over a year ago, but hot, humid and excessively wet conditions in some locations are not making it easy.
The latest weekly crop report on Tuesday said producers are expecting normal to above-normal yields in those areas where crops have faced fewer challenges. However, only fair yields are likely in those areas where crops are badly delayed and highly variable in terms of development.
Significant amounts of rain fell across much of southern Manitoba last week and into the weekend, with 50 to 120 mm rain falling along a track from Holland to Teulon, and close to St-Pierre-Jolys this morning, the report said. Overland flooding from this morning’s storm also washed out roads and caused significant crop damage near Teulon, with over 120 mm reported in local gauges there.
Earlier strong winds and thunderstorms also lodged spring wheat, oats, winter cereals, as well as some canola and corn crops. Farmers expect most crops to recover, but dense, lodged crop canopy can encourage rapid disease infection and associated yield losses, the report said.
Fungicide use is much more common in 2022 than in the past few years, due to the density of crop canopy, abundance of rain and dew, and risk of disease development.
Spring wheat has been flowering much of the previous week, with later crops now beginning to flower. Generally, south of the TransCanada Highway, and in local areas in other regions, the wheat crop is rated mostly good to excellent, with exceptions due to extreme moisture.
Barley crops range from penultimate leaf to headed out, depending on seeding date. Late barley was a last-resort option on wetter or poorer ground, while better barley crops are targeting malt quality. Oat crops range from flag leaf to panicle emergence and will put on rapid stem growth this week.
Canola crops are widely variable across Manitoba, with many looking in excellent condition, while a large number have thin stands, and remain in poor condition. Staging ranges from cabbaging over (6- to 8-leaf) to 50 to 60% bloom. Canola crop quality is estimated at 15% excellent, 45% good, and 40% fair condition. Late-seeded canola generally looks good, but there are many “hit or miss” fields across all regions. Crops have improved in condition from two weeks ago but remain uneven.
Flax crops in areas with excessive rain and slow draining fields are struggling.
Soybeans are growing rapidly with recent hot weather. Canopies have closed on solid-seeded fields, as plants reach flowering stage. Crops are generally 2 to 3 feet tall (60 to 90 cm) in better fields. Field peas are flowering and in early pod formation stages.
Southwest:
Hot, humid conditions and rain pushed rapid crop development, but conditions were also ideal for disease infection. Most parts of the Southwest region received moisture during the week, and a low pressure system yesterday brought additional rainfall, further stressing already waterlogged crops in some areas further. Strong winds caused moderate crop lodging. Wet field conditions are causing field access problems for ground-based fungicide application.
Northwest:
A week of warmer weather and high temperatures over the weekend advanced crop development. Spikes in daytime temperature cause some pod/flower abortion in canola. Regional rainfall has been lower than in other parts of the province, and farms at The Pas are dry. Weed escapes following herbicide application are now visible, wild oats has popped above crop canopy in many cases. Most crops are developing well, but root rot is an issue in wet pea fields, and lodging has occurred in some cereal crops near Dauphin.
Central:
Seasonal to above-normal temperatures over the weekend contributed to sporadic and widespread thunderstorm development, bringing variable rainfall amounts across the region. Heavy rains and strong winds this morning resulted in flooded fields in the northern part of the region, and lodged crops across region. Lodging severity was variable, depending on crop stage, mostly restricted to earlier wheat crops, but some winter cereals, oats, canola and corn was leaning towards the western side of the region at Pilot Mound and Holland, where winds topped 100 km/hour.
Fungicide spraying is widespread in the region, on wheat, oats, canola, and peas. Some farms are considering applications on sunflowers, soybeans, and dry edible beans. General crop growth appears good, with some exceptions on unseeded fields north of Austin towards MacGregor.
Eastern:
Rains have caused problems with haying progress, resulting in quality downgrades to cut hay. Rainfall amounts since last Tuesday ranged from 16 to over 50 mm with some large accumulations of >50 mm in localized areas near St. Pierre and Stead occurring early this morning. Crops have progressed well with warm weather, and fungicide application is ongoing. Growers in the southern part of the region have been scouting wheat fields, and were concerned by orange insects thought to be wheat midge, but in all cases were found to be the non-harmful luxanid flies. Large jumps in crop growth were noted across the region, particularly in corn and soybeans.
Interlake:
Overland flooding from this morning’s storm has washed out roads in the Teulon area, and wiped out some crops. Damage assessment is ongoing. The northern Interlake remained drier this week, but standing water still evident in many areas. A high number of unseeded fields remain in the region, some of which have been chemfallowed, while others are covered in weeds. Foxtail barley is abundant on those fields, and spraying remained difficult due to wet conditions. One remaining unharvested 2021 crop has been combined in the northern Interlake or destroyed.
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