Reading Time: < 1 minute The so-far dry winter in Alberta is raising hopes that farmers will be able to get onto their fields early in order to deal with more than one million acres of unharvested crops. As of Jan. 31, snowpack accumulations were generally below normal in most areas (save for southern Alberta, where little to no snow […] Read more
Dry winter is just what’s needed
‘Change’ is the watchword in a warming world, says researcher
Longer summers and milder winters sound nice, but even the pluses come with some negatives
Reading Time: 3 minutes How will the Canadian cattle industry fare if global temperatures continue to rise? Count a reduced feed demand, a longer grazing season, and higher forage production among the benefits — but also expect more extreme weather, pests, and transport headaches, according to University of Manitoba research scientist Kim Ominski. “We know the future of our […] Read more
The top global weather stories of 2016 had a common theme
Whether you look at temperatures, ice at the poles, air quality, or the Fort Mac fires, the evidence of a warming planet is clear
Reading Time: 3 minutes It seems that a new list of the top global weather stories of 2016 comes out every day. So I thought I would go through some of these lists and pick the top stories that are shared by all of the lists. Of course, I might have a slight bias towards Canadian stories. I don’t think […] Read more
When it came to severe weather, Alberta (thankfully) was no. 2
We still had nearly twice as many ‘hail events’ as usual, but Manitoba was worse off for once
Reading Time: 3 minutes The new year comes with the usual list of Top 10 things about the previous year, and in the category of weather, this really appears to be the case. There are the Top 10 Prairie weather stories, Top 10 Canadian weather stories, and the Top 10 world weather stories (which often tend to be skewed […] Read more
ONE FOR THE BOOKS: Lessons learned, and a look ahead
‘Don’t wait for the perfect day’ is one of the key lessons from 2016, and sticking to rotations may be one for this year
Reading Time: 6 minutes Allison Ammeter didn’t see the inside of a combine in October. As harvest carried on across the province, Ammeter was left waiting and wondering when the rains would stop and whether she and husband Mike would finish harvest before the snow started flying. They didn’t. “We got not quite two-thirds done, which is fairly average […] Read more
It likely wasn’t your greatest year, but 2016 was definitely eventful
Weather was the big story but it was also a year when pulses took centre stage, farm groups came together like never before, and sustainable beef hit a milestone
Reading Time: 9 minutes Stepping back and looking at the year gone past is a great way to prepare for the one ahead. For most producers, 2016 was a grind with a distinct shortage of highlight reel moments. But the world always moves forward and there were many significant changes that took place over the last 12 months. Here […] Read more
Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow, says our weather expert
Being snowed in at Christmas has many advantages, argues Daniel Bezte, but big Yuletide snowstorms are relatively rare
Reading Time: 3 minutes The holiday season is about traditions, and so it’s time once again to do my traditional look at Christmas weather across the Prairies. In particular, a look back to see what the warmest and coldest Christmases were, and if there have ever been big Christmas snowstorms. I’ve shared this with you before, but at this […] Read more
‘Modernize’ grain grading, says Alberta Wheat
farm group says farmers would make more if Canadian grain Commission changes grading for sprouting and fusarium damage
Reading Time: 4 minutes Alberta Wheat wants the Canadian Grain Commission to “modernize” its grading system, saying it doesn’t align with market demands of international buyers. “It all comes down to wanting more objective measurements for quality standards,” said Kevin Auch, chair of the Alberta Wheat Commission. “We’ve got some pretty good grading standards — don’t get me wrong […] Read more
Will it be a typical La Niña winter on the Prairies this year?
La Niña usually brings more snow and colder temperatures, but some forecasts are painting a different picture for this year
Reading Time: 3 minutes After nearly 11 months of global record-setting temperatures, North America has had its turn seeing the warmest weather on the planet — at least when compared to average. I’ll have to admit: It really bugs me when people use the infamous line, “Where is global warming now?” every time temperatures in their region are colder […] Read more
Harvest progress continues as winter looms
Alberta crop conditions as of November 15
Reading Time: < 1 minute With a rapidly shrinking harvest window and a few good weather days, producers made every effort to harvest as much crop as possible as the onset of winter looms on the horizon. Producers in the Central and North West regions made good progress raising the provincial harvest percentage to 87 per cent, an increase of […] Read more