For the Period October 7 to 13, 2014

One year ago Dry weather allowed many producers to finish harvest as 97 per cent of the crop had been combined.

Follow the 2014 Crop Report on Twitter @SKAgriculture

Saskatchewan Harvest October 13 % combined Winter wheat* 99 Fall rye* 99 Spring wheat 88 Durum 90 Oats** 82 Barley 90 Canaryseed 77 Flax 52 Canola 92 Mustard 93 Soybeans 31 Lentils 94 Peas 99 Chickpeas 80 *includes one per cent ‘other' **includes three per cent ‘other'

Harvest Progress in SK Per cent Combined All Crops Oct 13/14 89 5 year avg. (2009-2013) 91 Oct 14/13 97 Oct 8/12 99 Oct 10/11 99 Oct 11/10 83 Oct 12/09 77 10 year avg. (2004-2013) 90

Significant harvest progress was made this past week thanks to warm and dry weather, according to Saskatchewan Agriculture's Weekly Crop Report.  Eighty-nine per cent of the 2014 crop is now combined and eight per cent is swathed or ready to straight-cut.  This is right in line with the five-year (2009-2013) average of 91 per cent combined and seven per cent swathed or ready to straight-cut.

Harvest is furthest advanced in the northwestern region, where 96 per cent of the crop is combined.  Ninety-five per cent is combined in the northeastern region; 94 per cent in the southwestern and west-central regions; 83 per cent in the southeastern region; and 79 per cent in the east-central region.  Many producers have finished harvest operations while others will need at least another week or more of warm and dry weather.

Ninety-four per cent of lentils, 93 per cent of mustard, 92 per cent of canola, 90 per cent of durum and barley and 88 per cent of spring wheat have been combined.

The majority of the province did not receive any rain this past week, although the Kindersley area reported 12 mm over the weekend.  Across the province, topsoil moisture conditions on cropland are rated as 11 per cent surplus, 83 per cent adequate, five per cent short and one per cent very short. 

Hay land and pasture topsoil moisture is rated as seven per cent surplus, 82 per cent adequate and 11 per cent short.

Very little crop damage was reported, although high levels of fusarium head blight are being reported in many areas. 

Livestock producers are indicating adequate amounts of hay, straw, greenfeed and feed grain for their winter feeding supplies.

Farmers are busy harvesting, hauling bales, moving cattle and completing fall work.

Southeastern Saskatchewan (Crop District 1 - Carnduff, Estevan, Redvers, Moosomin and Kipling areas; Crop District 2 - Weyburn, Milestone, Moose Jaw, Regina and Qu'Appelle areas; Crop District 3ASE - Radville and Lake Alma areas)

Warm and dry weather allowed producers to return to the field last week. Eighty-three per cent of the crop is now in the bin, up significantly from 67 per cent last week. An additional 12 per cent is swathed or ready to straight-cut. The five-year (2009-2013) average for this time of year is 93 per cent combined. Harvest is furthest advanced in Crop District 3ASE, where 95 per cent of the crop is combined. Eighty-six per cent is combined in 2A; 82 per cent in 2B; 81 per cent in 1A; and 78 per cent in 1B. Some producers are wrapping up harvest efforts while others will need at least another week or more of good weather in order to complete harvest.  

Very little rainfall was received this past week; the Briercrest area reported 1 mm. The Moosomin area continues to report the greatest amount of rainfall for both the region and the province (912 mm). Topsoil moisture conditions on cropland have improved since last week and are now rated as 29 per cent surplus and 71 per cent adequate. Hay land and pasture moisture is rated as 11 per cent surplus, 85 per cent adequate and four per cent short. There continues to be reports of very wet fields and equipment getting stuck multiple times a day.

Grain quality remains a concern for many in the region. There are reports that some elevators have rejected loads of grain due to high fusarium levels. There are also reports of some producers swathing and burning durum and wheat fields due to high disease levels. Excess moisture, frost and other diseases have also caused quality issues and downgrading at the elevator is expected.   

The majority of livestock producers are indicating they have adequate to surplus supplies of hay (95 per cent), straw (99 per cent), greenfeed (99 per cent) and feed grain (99 per cent) for their winter feeding needs. Some fields with excess straw are being baled. 

Farmers are busy harvesting, hauling bales and grain, moving cattle and completing fall work.

Southwestern Saskatchewan (Crop District 3ASW - Coronach, Assiniboia and Ogema areas; Crop District 3AN - Gravelbourg, Mossbank, Mortlach and Central Butte areas; Crop District 3B - Kyle, Swift Current , Shaunavon and Ponteix areas; Crop District 4 - Consul, Maple Creek and Leader areas)

Significant harvest progress was made this past week thanks to warm and dry weather. Ninety-four per cent of the crop is now combined, right on par with the five-year (2009-2013) average for this time of year. Harvest is furthest advanced in crop districts 3BN and 4B, where 99 per cent of the crop is combined. Crop districts 3BS and 4A have 97 per cent combined; 3AN has 87 per cent combined and 3ASW has 79 per cent combined. Many producers have completed harvest while others will need at least a week of good weather in order to finish. 

Little rainfall was received in the region, although the Cabri area reported 3 mm. Since April 1, the Cadillac area has received 599 mm of rain, the greatest amount for the region. Topsoil moisture conditions on cropland are rated as seven per cent surplus, 91 per cent adequate and two per cent short. Hay land and pasture moisture is rated as six per cent surplus, 89 per cent adequate and five per cent short.  

Quality remains a concern for many producers and downgrading is expected at the elevator as there are high levels of fusarium in many durum and wheat crops. Frost, moisture and other diseases have also caused quality issues in many crops. There have been reports of combine fires in some areas.

The majority of livestock producers are indicating they have adequate to surplus supplies of hay (97 per cent), straw (96 per cent), greenfeed (100 per cent) and feed grain (100 per cent) for their winter feeding needs. Some fields with excess straw are being baled.     

Farmers are busy harvesting, hauling grain and bales, moving cattle and finishing fall work.

East-Central Saskatchewan (Crop District 5 - Melville, Yorkton, Cupar, Kamsack, Foam Lake, Preeceville and Kelvington areas; Crop District 6A - Lumsden, Craik, Watrous and Clavet areas)

Harvest is quickly advancing in the region thanks to some warm and dry weather. Seventy-nine per cent of the crop is now in the bin, up from 57 per cent last week. An additional 15 per cent is swathed or ready to straight-cut. The five-year (2009-2013) average for this time of year is 90 per cent combined. Crop District 5A has 84 per cent of the crop combined; 6A has 78 per cent combined; and 5B has 77 per cent combined. Most producers will need at least another week or more of good weather to finish harvest and any fall work.

The region received little rain this week, although the Bethune area is reporting 5 mm.

The Foam Lake area has received 772 mm of rain since April 1, the greatest amount for the region. Topsoil moisture conditions on cropland have improved since last week and are now rated as 17 per cent surplus, 80 per cent adequate and three per cent short. Hay land and pasture moisture is rated as 14 per cent surplus, 80 per cent adequate and six per cent short. Fields remain wet in many areas and equipment is getting stuck.

Quality still remains an issue in much of the region, with many reports of high fusarium levels. Significant downgrading is expected at the elevator and there are reports of loads being rejected. There are also reports of some producers swathing and burning durum and wheat fields due to the high disease levels.  

The majority of livestock producers are indicating they have adequate to surplus supplies of hay (91 per cent), straw (100 per cent), greenfeed (97 per cent) and feed grain (98 per cent) for their winter feeding needs. Some fields with excess straw are being baled. 

Farmers are busy harvesting, baling straw, applying fall fertilizers and aerating tough grain.

West-Central Saskatchewan (Crop Districts 6B - Hanley, Outlook, Loreburn, Saskatoon and Arelee areas; Crop District 7A - Rosetown, Kindersley, Eston, Major; CD 7B - Kerrobert, Macklin, Wilkie and Biggar areas)

Tremendous progress was made this past week. The region now has 95 per cent of the crop combined, up from 76 per cent last week. The five-year (2009-2013) average for this time of year is 90 per cent combined. Ninety-six per cent is combined in Crop District 7B; 94 per cent in 7A; and 92 per cent in 6B. Some producers have wrapped up harvest efforts while others will need at least another week of good weather in order to finish.

Much of the region received little rainfall this past week, although the Kindersley area reported 12 mm. Since April 1, the Kerrobert area has received the greatest amount of rainfall for the region (454 mm). Topsoil moisture conditions on cropland are rated as one per cent surplus, 86 per cent adequate and 13 per cent short. Hay land and pasture topsoil moisture is rated as one per cent surplus, 81 per cent adequate, 17 per cent short and one per cent very short. There have been several reports of grass and combine fires in the region due to the dry field conditions.  

There are many reports of downgrading at the elevator due to high fusarium and other disease levels. Frost and moisture have also caused some quality issues. Combining of flax has been difficult as stems are remaining green and are very tough.

The majority of livestock producers are indicating they have adequate to surplus supplies of hay (94 per cent), straw (99 per cent), greenfeed (100 per cent) and feed grain (100 per cent) for their winter feeding needs. Some fields with excess straw are being baled. 

Farmers are busy harvesting, aerating tough grain, applying anhydrous ammonia fertilizer and moving cattle.

Northeastern Saskatchewan (Crop District 8 - Hudson Bay, Tisdale, Melfort, Carrot River, Humboldt, Kinistino, Cudworth and Aberdeen areas; Crop District 9AE - Prince Albert, Choiceland and Paddockwood areas)

Harvest is now 95 per cent complete in the region, significantly up from 80 per cent last week. The five-year (2009-2013) average for this time of year is 88 per cent combined. Ninety-eight per cent of the crop is combined in Crop District 9AE, while 94 per cent is combined in both 8A and 8B. Many producers have completed harvest and others will be done soon. 

The Star City area reported 3 mm of rain for the week, while the Lake Lenore area has received 515 mm of rain since April 1. Topsoil moisture conditions on cropland are rated as one per cent surplus, 96 per cent adequate and three per cent short. Hay land and pasture topsoil moisture is rated as one per cent surplus, 96 per cent adequate and three per cent short. 

High disease levels are common in the region, with many reports of low quality grain. Some cereals also have midge damage and have been downgraded at the elevator. There are also reports of some producers swathing and burning durum and wheat fields due to high fusarium levels. Flax crops are not drying down quickly, making combining difficult.   

The majority of livestock producers are indicating they have adequate to surplus supplies of hay (98 per cent), straw (100 per cent), greenfeed (99 per cent) and feed grain (100 per cent) for their winter feeding needs. Some fields with excess straw are being baled. 

Farmers are busy harvesting, applying fall fertilizers, hauling bales and completing fall work.

Northwestern Saskatchewan (Crop District 9AW - Shellbrook, North Battleford, Big River and Hafford areas; Crop District 9B - Meadow Lake, Turtleford, Pierceland, Maidstone and Lloydminster areas)

The northwestern region leads the province with 96 per cent of the crop combined. This is up from 83 per cent last week and well ahead of the five-year (2009-2013) average of 86 per cent combined for this time of year. Ninety-seven per cent of the crop is combined in Crop District 9B and 95 per cent is combined in 9AW. While most producers have wrapped up harvest efforts, some will need another week or more of good weather in order to finish.

No rain was recorded in the region this past week. The North Battleford area has received the greatest amount of rain since April 1 (527 mm). Topsoil moisture conditions on cropland are rated as two per cent surplus, 76 per cent adequate, 17 per cent short and five per cent very short. Hay land and pasture topsoil moisture is rated as one per cent surplus, 64 per cent adequate, 34 per cent short and one per cent very short. There have been some reports of combine fires due to the dry field conditions.

There are still quality concerns in much of the cereals as high fusarium levels are common. Combining of certain crops such as flax has been difficult due to green stems and insufficient dry down. Some crops that were fairly green when frost struck a few weeks ago may not be combined. 

The majority of livestock producers are indicating they have adequate to surplus supplies of hay (100 per cent), straw (98 per cent), greenfeed (100 per cent) and feed grain (100 per cent) for their winter feeding needs. Some fields with excess straw are being baled. 

Farmers are busy finishing up harvest, hauling grain and bales, moving cattle and completing fall work.

Saskatchewan Harvest Progress - October 13, 2014

*Other - crop that will not be harvested due to weather, insect or disease damage or will be greenfeed