Farmscape for August 3, 2023

Saskatchewan Agriculture reports combines have started rolling into the fields in the drier regions of the province, especially the west central and southwest regions.
Saskatchewan Agriculture released its weekly crop report this morning.
Mackenzie Hladun, a crop extension specialist with Saskatchewan Agriculture, says dry conditions are impacting parts of the province and many producers are hoping for immediate rain.

Quote-Mackenzie Hladun-Saskatchewan Agriculture:
This past week we saw quite a few combines making it out into the fields, especially in west central and southwest regions of Saskatchewan.
Many other areas of the province are preparing for harvest operations.
Others are preparing equipment and getting those combines ready or also by applying desiccant.
Those hot and dry conditions that we saw throughout the summer definitely persisted this past week and the crops began to ripen and are ripening quite quickly.
A lot of our producers are hoping for rain once the crops are off to help replenish our soil moisture levels for next year.
Rain this past week, we got some rain in the north part of the province this past week and pockets moved through the northern region and some of those pockets had some hail within them.
We've received some reports of hail damage as well.
The most rain that was recorded was in the Prince Albert region with 53 millimeters and the Shellbrook region also received some significant moisture with 47 mls.
Other areas of the province received some precipitation but really, they only reported up to trace amounts.
Hot temperatures persisted this past week which, coupled with our lack of rain, caused a decrease in soil moisture.
Provincially cropland topsoil moisture is rated at 13 percent adequate, 49 percent short and 38 percent very short.
Hay and pastureland are very similar where 11 percent is adequate, 42 percent is short and 47 percent is very short.
Across the province, if we look at our maps, we see that our soil moisture is pretty short or starting to be limited throughout the entire province, mostly in that central and west central regions and it begins to lighten a bit as we move further east.
However, we're definitely seeing some short moisture conditions this past summer.

Hladun says over the next week more producers will be looking at getting into the fields to begin harvest.
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Bruce Cochrane.

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