Saskatchewan producers made substantial seeding progress during the past week as warmer, drier weather allowed equipment back into fields. However, plenty of work is still ahead.
Thursday’s provincial crop report showed seeding was 52% complete as of Monday, up sharply from 29% a week earlier but still trailing the five-year average of 74% and the 10-year average of 77%. At the same point last year, 88% of the crop had already been planted.
The southwest remains the furthest advanced region at 74% complete, followed closely by west-central Saskatchewan at 69%. Progress remains slower in the eastern half of the province, where wet field conditions have limited activity, leaving east-central and northeast regions at just 26% and 25% seeded, respectively.
Pulse crops lead planting progress, with field peas and lentils both more than three-quarters seeded, while cereals and oilseeds continue to lag. Durum is the most advanced cereal crop at 74% seeded, while canola sits at only 38% complete.
Rainfall was highly variable across Saskatchewan during the past week, with some areas receiving heavy precipitation. Martin recorded the highest total at 60 millimetres, while Craik received 59 mm and portions of southeastern Saskatchewan picked up 40-45 mm. Despite the moisture, topsoil conditions remain generally stable, with 70% of cropland rated adequate, 19% surplus, and 11% short. That marks a slight deterioration from the previous week, when only 5% was considered short and 1% very short.
Crop development remains behind normal across virtually all categories. Spring cereals, oilseeds, pulse crops, and forage development are lagging seasonal benchmarks, with oilseeds showing some of the largest delays. Producers also reported scattered issues from flooding, frost, wind damage, insects, and localized dryness, although overall crop damage remains minor. With favourable weather expected, farmers are optimistic seeding progress will accelerate rapidly in the coming week while balancing other spring work, including herbicide applications, cattle turnout, and land rolling, the report said.
Southeast:
With improved weather conditions over the past week, seeding progress has advanced significantly across the southeastern region. Overall progress is now reported at 61% complete, which is an increase of 20% from the previous week. Despite this notable gain, seeding progress remains below the five-year average of 68%, indicating that producers are still behind the typical seeding season.
Rainfall was significant this week, with high amounts scattered across the region. The Martin area reported 60 millimetres (mm), followed by the Fertile Belt area at 45 mm and the Stanley and Abernethy areas both received 40 mm of rainfall. Many other areas throughout the region also received some rainfall.
Southwest:
Producers in the southwest region report that seeding is 74% complete, which is an increase of 20% from last week’s report. Despite this improvement, seeding progress remains behind the five-year average of 83%.
Some rainfall was reported in this region over the past week, with the highest amount recorded in the Craik area at 59 millimetres (mm). The Huron area received 26 mm of rainfall, and the Eyebrow area reported about 20 mm.
East-Central:
Seeding in the region advanced to 26% over the past week. While this remains below the five-year average of 62%, it represents an increase of 15% compared to last week’s report.
Rainfall amounts varied across the region. The highest amount reported was in the Sliding Hills area at 40 millimetres (mm), followed by the Calder area at 32 mm and the Foam Lake area at 27 mm. Other areas received significant amounts of precipitation.
West-Central:
Producers are reporting 69% seeding completion within the region over the past week. This represents an increase of 39% from the previous week and is behind the five-year average of 83%.
Rainfall was variable throughout the region, with the highest recorded in the Perdue area at 20 millimetres (mm), followed by the Milden area at 10 mm. The Eye Hill and Hillsdale areas received five mm.
Northeast:
Producers reported 25% seeding completion, up by 21% from last week’s report. This is significantly behind the five-year average of 69%.
Very little rain fell across the region over the past week, with the highest recorded amount at three millimetres (mm) in the Hudson Bay region. Star City and Rosthern both recorded two mm.
Northwest:
Producers are reporting 55% seeding completion within the region over the past week. This is up 39% from the previous report and significantly behind the five-year average of 84%.
Some rainfall occurred in this region over the past week, with the highest recorded amount falling in the Beaver River area at 10 millimetres (mm). The Canwood, Eldon and Frenchman Butte areas all recorded five mm of rainfall last week.
