A swather sits in a field near Estevan. The weekly crop report says there has been some slight delays for the hay crop.

The weekly crop report has been released by the Saskatchewan Ministry of Agriculture. The report says that the hay crop across the province is twenty-two per cent cut and twenty-eight per cent is baled or put into silage. The hay numbers are behind the yearly average, and well behind the numbers from this time last year when fifty-four per cent of the hay crop was baled or put into silage. Regional Crop Specialist Daphne Cruise says that a large part of the delays involve rainfall, although progress was made.

"Basically the weather is what's causing the delays," Cruise said."Frequent rainshowers and high humidity has resulted in the swath not drying down at all for livestock producers."

At this time, hay quality has not been affected for the most part. Hay quality is rated as nine per cent excellent, 62 per cent good, 26 per cent fair and three per cent poor. The average dryland hay yields for the province are 1.6 tons per acre for alfalfa; 1.5 tons per acre for alfalfa/bromegrass; 1.3 tons per acre for other tame hay; and 2.2 tons per acre for greenfeed.  Dryland hay yields are slightly above the five and ten-year averages of 1.4 tons per acre overall. Cruise spoke on what many producers will look to see weather wise over the next week.

"For the majority of the province, what we need was a break in weather and for the skies to clear up," Cruise said. "On some of the flooded acres, particularly in the southeast, for those that have been flooded for a couple of weeks now, a lot of those crops will not recover. Producers have indicated that there are crops that have gone past the point of recovery even if the soils do dry out."

Cruise adds that Estevan and area was able to dodge most of the rainfall over the last week, with most of the effects of the floodwaters from the July 10th storm only affecting those directly in or near the City of Estevan. Across the province, cropland topsoil moisture is rated as 22 per cent surplus, 76 per cent adequate and two per cent short.  Hay land and pasture topsoil moisture is rated as 11 per cent surplus, 86 per cent adequate and three per cent short.

As for other crops in the province, most are progressing normally with fifty-three per cent of fall cereals, 69 per cent of oilseeds, 67 per cent of spring cereals and 65 per cent of pulses are at their normal developmental stages for this time of year.

Over the next week Cruise says many farmers and producers will be continuing haying operations, as well as performing disease and pest control when needed.

This week's full report can be viewed here.

Last Week's Report