A hot week across Saskatchewan with some thunderstorms and strong winds that produced hail to some regions.
Some areas of the province are fully underway with harvest, while rainfall and humidity have stalled operations in other sections.
Harvest progress continues to lag behind the five and 10-year averages with 12 per cent of the crop off according to the Ministry of Agriculture’s Crop Report.
The southwest continues to lead harvest progress as 23 per cent of crops are off, followed by the southeast where progress sits at 14 per cent. The east and west-central regions trail behind at 11 per cent and six per cent harvest progress.
Inside of the northeastern section of the province including Humboldt, early seeded crops are starting to be combined, but harvest progress sits at three per cent. Producers are busy spraying crops, swathing and preparing equipment for harvest.
The only crops that have been taken off so far are winter cereals, pulses and barley. Eighty-nine per cent of fall rye and 51 per cent of winter wheat are in the bin. For other crops, 19 per cent of field peas and nine per cent of lentils and barley have been harvested.
With the rainfall, the heaviest amount was in the northeast corner of the region with Nipawin receiving 42 mm. Aberdeen had 18 mm.
With the modest rainfall, topsoil moisture remains similar to last week. For cropland, topsoil moisture is seven per cent surplus, 86 per cent adequate and seven per cent short. Hayland topsoil moisture is seven per cent surplus, 83 per cent adequate and 10 per cent short. Finally, pasture topsoil moisture is four per cent surplus, 84 per cent adequate and 12 per cent short.
Pastures inside of the northeast are the best quality. Currently, 13 per cent of pastures are in excellent condition, 54 per cent are good, 26 per cent are fair and only seven per cent are poor.
The strong winds and hail of last week's thunderstorms did cause some damage to the crops. There was minor to moderate damage in some crops that experienced these conditions. Additionally, bertha armyworms continue to be a concern in parts of the northeast as producers continue to spray canola crops.