London, 29 June (Argus) — Canada’s new-crop canola development has slowed because of rainy and cool weather in most growing provinces, while unfavourable conditions have hampered spraying operations, according to the latest local crop reports.
Oilseed development in Saskatchewan, the country’s largest canola-producing province, was the most delayed among crops. About 45pc of oilseeds remained behind normal growth stages, with only 1pc ahead and 54pc reported at normal stage, as of 22 June.
Crop planting in the province was nearly complete at 99pc by 22 June. Some acreages went unseeded this season because of excessive moisture, and some planted areas were flooded and are unlikely to produce a crop, the provincial report says.
Heavy rain during the third week of June had mixed impacts across Saskatchewan, with fields becoming saturated in parts of the province, while areas short of moisture benefited. Topsoil moisture in cropping regions rated adequate rose to 77pc from 74pc a week earlier, while only 3pc was short compared with 11pc in the previous week. But surplus moisture increased to 20pc from 15pc. Excess moisture caused some crop damage across much of the province.
In Alberta, 63pc of the canola crop was in good-to-excellent condition as of 23 June, up by 3 percentage points on the week and above 58pc at this time last year. Soil moisture was mostly rated good to excellent, but the share of areas with excess moisture rose to 13pc in the week to 23 June from 8pc a week earlier. Soil moisture levels were above historical averages.
Cool and wet weather also slowed crop development and caused yellowing in many regions of the province. Canola will need higher temperatures to catch up in development, the report says. Large areas of standing water and localised flooding were reported in the northwest, leading to moisture stress.
Manitoba reported quick canola development in the week to 23 June, but progress was uneven across regions. Crops were generally at the 3-5 leaf stage, with the earliest fields nearing the 6-leaf stage. But canola planting in the northwest, where sowing faced delays, was still only 85pc complete, although this was 10 percentage points higher on the week. In the southwest, canola was starting to rosette, and flea beetles had already caused some crop damage, the report says.
Looking ahead, higher temperatures are forecast for all growing regions from early July and could support canola development. But continued rain expected in the coming days could strain crops already facing water stress in parts of the provinces.
By Nataliia Haisonok
