“We’re looking at a possible bumper crop in the Weyburn area.”
Dale Paslawski, who farms north of Weyburn, is one of the many farmers in the region who are feeling very positive about this year’s crop. With how this year is playing out in the southeast, it is hard for many not to be positive.
This year, the weather has been a prime factor for the early success farmers are seeing. The temperatures have been seasonal, or slightly below seasonal, for much of the growing season so far. There have been minimal hot days, which helps prevent heat stress, something that has caused issues in recent years.
The rainfall has also been good. It has been timely, and for many producers in the region, the right amount they have needed to see strong growth and development.
“Actually, I think the weather’s been okay,” Paslawski told Discover Weyburn. “Overall, I’d say the weather’s been bang on.”
Now, producers are waiting for that late-July, early-August heat to help finish the crop development.
Paslawski noted the later-seeded crops, particularly those that went in after the heavy rains in May, are looking the best in his area. Earlier-seeded crops, though, are looking good as well. For the Weyburn-area farmer, he is already looking at when he could be in the field to start this year’s harvest.
“We've got some yellow peas that are starting to turn a little bit,” Paslawski said. “So probably around the 10th of August, we're going to be getting into harvest on yellow peas and maybe a few lentils.”
Not every part of the province is having as good a year. The southwest has been mired in a years-long drought, and this is having a big impact on their crop development.
“I've got friends out at Fox Valley and south of Swift Current that, actually, their crops are extremely poor,” Paslawski shared. “So there's winners and losers this year, like every year.”
Other parts of the southeast, though, are in the same shape, and if not better, than what Paslawski described for the Weyburn area. He noted the crops in the Fort Qu’Appelle area look the best he has ever seen them, and that things between Kelvington and Weyburn are spectacular.
Not every crop thrives under the conditions we are experiencing, though. Some of the pulse crops, such as lentils, need things to be a bit different.
“Crops like lentils, they don't like wet feet," Paslawski said. “It just seems to make, what do you call it, root rot and some leaf diseases.”
With the possibility of disease in mind, most farmers are taking steps to mitigate the risks. This includes spraying with fungicides to help prevent the spread of various crop diseases that can start to pop up in wetter conditions.