Ag Weather Forum

Weather conditions in the Canadian Prairies during the last 10 days or so have been pretty good for producers looking to combine their crops and do other fieldwork. Temperatures have generally been above normal and precipitation has been light or absent. We did see a significant front move through on Sept. 3-4. It may have brought some breezier winds in a few spots, some rain, and a burst of cooler weather, but overall it has still been good weather.

That good weather continues into early next week. An upper-level ridge of high pressure is building in the region, causing temperatures to rise again. Daytime highs may eclipse the 30-degree Celsius (86-degree Fahrenheit) mark in several spots during the next few days, helping crops to dry down and get it ready to combine. But there will be some challenges ahead for next week.

The ridge will shift eastward toward Hudson Bay and a trough of low pressure will move in early in the week. In response, a storm system should move through far northern areas, dragging a front through the region that will bring down temperatures. But it will also bring a risk of showers and potential for some strong winds, particularly right behind the front for a day, Monday in the west and Tuesday in the east. Another trough will build into the Western United States and that, too, should develop a storm system. This time, it will go through the Northern Plains in the middle of next week with another likely push later next week or weekend.

Though the details will still need to be worked out with all three systems, stronger winds, periodic showers, and cooler conditions will be an annoyance for the rest of the fieldwork and harvest. And nearly half of the crop is still out in the fields. Manitoba noted that just 24% of the crop has been harvested so far as of Aug. 26. That may be closer to 50% now. Saskatchewan has harvest pegged at 42% on this week's report, as of Sept. 2, probably also closer to 50% by the end of the week. This week's crop report from Alberta was not in at the time of this writing, but last week stood at 20%, as of Aug. 27. With half of the crop still out in the fields awaiting the combine, there could be some significant impact on the remaining crop out there. Whether delays to operations, damage from winds or severe weather, or quality concerns due to rain, there are still weather issues to deal with in the Canadian Prairies before the season is over.

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John Baranick can be reached at john.baranick@dtn.com

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