(Photo courtesy Canada Beef Inc.)

Prairie forage crops perk up with precipitation

CNS Canada — It’s been a slow start for forage crops growing across the Prairies, but the much-needed precipitation is better late than never. “The rain has been a huge help,” said Karin Lindquist, forage specialist with Alberta’s Ag-Info Centre in Stettler. “There are still some areas that could use a bit more, but so […] Read more


A Canada thistle seedling. (Photo courtesy Canola Council of Canada)

Rain holds up spraying as weeds thrive in Manitoba

CNS Canada –– A steady dose of rain to start the week has put a crimp on herbicide applications across Manitoba. While weeds weren’t noticeable a few weeks ago due to the relative dryness, they’re definitely becoming more noticeable, according to crop watchers. “We know that with the rain and warmer temperatures, both the crops […] Read more



Averaged sea surface temperatures and sea surface temperature anomalies worldwide for the week centred on Feb. 3. (CPC.ncep.noaa.gov)

Timing of La Nina to play key role in Prairie moisture

CNS Canada –– As the El Nino weather phenomena slowly loosens its grip across Western Canada, many weather watchers say its impact has been somewhat underwhelming. However, one meteorologist said its lingering presence, coupled with the pending arrival of the La Nina weather event, may still play a large role in determining how much moisture […] Read more

Mackenzie County Reeve Bill Neufeld stands in a dried-out field. Every farmer in the region has been hurt by the drought but cattle producers have been especially affected.

Dry doesn’t describe it in Mackenzie County

Almost no rain has fallen across a county that’s bigger than 
New Brunswick — and that’s devastating for the cattle industry

Reading Time: 4 minutes Drought hits everyone hard, but Mackenzie County’s 150 cattle producers have been squeezed harder and earlier than most — and the fallout may be felt for years. Cattleman Eric Jorgensen remembers looking at an agro-climatic map in mid-June that showed the province’s largest county, which at 80,000 square kilometres is larger than New Brunswick, had […] Read more


Rain in Sask., Man. stalls harvest, causes crop damage

Rain in Sask., Man. stalls harvest, causes crop damage

CNS Canada — Rain in Manitoba and Saskatchewan has stalled harvest and caused crop damage, but moving forward, conditions should improve, two industry specialists predict. Shannon Friesen, a regional crops specialist with Saskatchewan Agriculture in Moose Jaw, said recent rains have delayed harvest and stalled maturity in some crops. Producers have found peas and canola […] Read more

Prairies should see rain this week, except where needed most

Prairies should see rain this week, except where needed most

CNS Canada –– Most of the Prairies are expected to get well-timed rain that will maximize growing potential, except for where it’s needed most, according to a U.S. weather specialist. Saskatchewan Drew Lerner, president at World Weather Inc., based near Kansas City, said the driest areas in southwestern Saskatchewan will not get rain. “That region […] Read more


(Allan Dawson photo)

U.S. grains: Corn sets one-year highs on tighter old-crop U.S. supply

Chicago | Reuters — U.S. corn futures reached one-year highs and soybeans jumped on Friday as the U.S. Agriculture Department made bigger-than-expected cuts to its estimates for stocks of crops left over from last year’s harvests. The reductions, revealed in a monthly USDA report, added to concerns about supplies among traders worried that persistent rains […] Read more