wheat field

Crop conditions improve, harvest operations underway

Alberta crop conditions as of August 9

Reading Time: 2 minutes Rains continued to fall across the province stretching from the Peace Region to the Southern Region. Provincially, crop conditions improved for all Regions from a week ago and are rated as 84 per cent in good or excellent condition, up one per cent from a week ago and up 13 per cent from the 5-year […] Read more

(Weatherfarm.com)

Wet weather threatens lentils, durum

CNS Canada — Wet weather across the Prairies has put a damper on the region’s crop prospects, according to one weather specialist. While drying events in coming weeks will limit further quality declines, it’s not expected to do so as much as some producers would like. “It’s really quite wet in some locations, and it’s […] Read more


Red lentils. (Pulse Canada photo)

Abandonment of some lentil acres likely

CNS Canada — As thunderstorms and wet weather continue across Saskatchewan, so grows the number of lentil fields being put at risk of yield loss and potential abandonment. “Certainly in that west-central part of the province, Rosetown and other significant lentil-growing regions, we have seen some problems and crop failures due to too much moisture,” […] Read more

Lentil acres in Alberta have more than doubled in 2016, thanks in part to better genetics, said provincial crop specialist Neil Whatley.

Pulses’ popularity points to bright future

The boom in pulse acres may just be getting started thanks 
to rising demand, better varieties, and strong profitability

Reading Time: 3 minutes Only one hand shot up when Neil Whatley asked a recent crop tour near Castor if anyone was growing lentils this year. Luckily, a more rigorous Statistics Canada survey tells the real story — there are a whole lot of hands growing lentils this year. “There’s close to six million acres on the Prairies this […] Read more


If you haven’t locked in lentil prices, keep a close watch on the markets as bigs can move 10 cents or more on spikes, said Alberta Pulse Growers’ Nevin Rosaasen.

Lentil harvest — and marketing — comes with a learning curve

Lentils stay green into harvest, but you don’t want to wait too long

Reading Time: 3 minutes With Alberta lentil acres more than doubling in 2016, this fall will be the first-ever lentil harvest for a good number of growers. The trick to doing it successfully? Patience, said Nevin Rosaasen, policy and program specialist with Alberta Pulse Growers. “Harvesting lentils can be tricky, and you need to be patient,” said Rosaasen. “Lentils […] Read more

Haying dogged by persistent showers, crop conditions also affected

Alberta crop conditions as of July 26

Reading Time: < 1 minute Warmer temperatures covered the province but the persistent showery weather continued in most regions affecting haying progress principally but also crop conditions. The provincial crop condition rating was virtually unchanged from last week at 82.5 per cent of crops rated in good or excellent condition compared to the five year average of 72 per cent […] Read more


Saskatchewan crops battle through moisture

Commodity News Service Canada – Saskatchewan crops are in generally good condition despite recent wet and windy weather, says the Saskatchewan government. In a release, the province said sixty-two per cent of the spring wheat, winter wheat, flax and canola was in good condition as of July 25. Lentils are rated as 15 per cent excellent, […] Read more

Photo: File/Sharlene Bennie (2014)

Combining begins in drier sections of Western Prairies

Commodity News Service Canada – Producers in southern Alberta have begun to combine some grain and pulses, according to a farm leader. “Down around Lethbridge and south of it, they had pretty decent moisture so they’ve got good crops. Guys are starting to combine winter wheat now and peas,” said Lynn Jacobsen, president of the Alberta […] Read more


A canola field in St. Andrews, Manitoba on July 5, 2016.  Photo: Greg Berg

No drying trend in store for Canadian Prairies

Commodity News Service – Crops on the Western Canadian Prairies could be seeing more soggy conditions in the next six to 10 days, according to a noted U.S. weather watcher. “Saskatchewan and Manitoba will probably have a net drying bias for this week,” said Drew Lerner of World Weather Inc. in Kansas City on July 25. […] Read more

Crops progressing well due to plenty of warmth, moisture

Alberta crop conditions as of July 19

Reading Time: 2 minutes With significant rains across the province, particularly in the South and Central Regions over the past two weeks, most of the agricultural lands in Alberta have seen at least near normal amounts of precipitation to date (refer to the map below). Provincially, crop growing conditions improved by two per cent from last week to 83 […] Read more