Harvest behind schedule in Manitoba due to wet year
The race is on to get crops off the field and in the bin, as a slow start to the growing season and wet fall weather have delayed this year's harvest.
"We're probably a good, in between three and four weeks behind because of our wet spring," said Kevin Stott, who farms near Niverville, Man.
While the sun was shining Wednesday, weather conditions this year have done little to help Manitoba farmers.
It's expected to become the wettest year on record in Winnipeg, with 2022 on track to surpass the previous high set back in 1962.
That's had an impact on the start of the growing season, and in turn, harvest.
The work is only 47 per cent complete across the province, according to the latest Manitoba crop report.
That's about three-and-a-half weeks behind schedule, compared to the five-year average of 79 per cent, which is how much of the crop farmers would typically have harvested at this point in the year.
Stott said in addition to stress, the delay just makes it more difficult to get the job done.
"You have shorter days to work," he said. "You end up having an eight-hour day now instead of a 10 or 14, which you'd like. It takes a little longer to dry. There's dew in the morning. You're starting a little later, hence the short day."
Although not unheard for this time of year, recent frosts have only made matters worse. Western Manitoba was hit on Sept. 22, and there was frost in much of the rest of the province on Tuesday.
"For the most part, most of the spring-seeded cereals and pulses and oilseeds are mature and hoping that there's not too much damage because of the frost," said Bill Campbell, president of the farm lobby group Keystone Agricultural Producers.
It's a sentiment echoed in the crop report.
"Some crop injury is expected in green (immature) canola and soybeans, but damage is expected to be relatively light," the report notes.
Challenges that Campbell, who farms near Minto, Man., said producers are hopeful they can overcome if mother nature cooperates.
"There is quite a bit of variability, but there has been some good yields, and so we're optimistic that we can get a pretty good average crop in the bin," Campbell said.
CTV News Winnipeg also spoke with two producers who farm north of Winnipeg. One of them said he just started harvesting his 3300 acres but could only plant two-thirds of those acres due to wet conditions this spring.
Another producer said he's about 50 per cent finished, highlighting the variability across the province and even within the region.
It's been one extreme to another. Farmers went from a drought last year to a wet year this year and are working to find ways to deal with the impacts of climate change, Campbell said.
"We all are aware of the element of extremes," he said. "That seems to be the biggest impact that we have. We can handle five inches of rain spread throughout the month of June or July but not at one time."
He said producers are diversifying what they grow, carrying the right insurance and managing their land to adapt.
Stott's focused on the bright side: prices have stayed strong and the quality of the crop has been good.
He's just hoping for favourable weather conditions.
"We got this beautiful weather to work with us right now, and at the end of the week, I think you'll see a lot of acres torn off," Stott predicted.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Maple Leafs fall to Bruins in Game 3, trail series 2-1
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
New Indigenous loan guarantee program a 'really big deal,' Freeland says at Toronto conference
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.