How's your rain?

[ASRG]

Some on here were saying they are lacking moisture (grassfarmer and ALLFARMER)?
Has that changed? We've been getting lots of rain east of Red Deer......I'll never say too much after 2002 and 2009! If anything, we could use some sun! However grass is lush and crops are looking good.
The land I broke last year has a good crop growing (barley)....sprayed out with roundup and spiked 3 times/disced twice/harrowed twice. Fairly clean with some dandelions and young thistles(dying after spray last week).
Next year canola! yahoo!

[newguy]

Sprayed 200 acres of tame hay twice last year. End of june and mid august. Sprayed before seeding then direct seeded. No sod left was perfect conditions. Seeded some to canola and some to durum. Moisture has been from just right then too wet now just right again.

[ALLFARMER]

Still dry here ASRG maybe 1/4" since spring

Crops look ok considering

Need to decide/figure what its going to turn out
like in terms if yield. Thinking of buying anywhere
between 35 to 70 heifers next week.

[kato]

Once spring of 2011 monsoons quit, we had zero rain all last summer, which made for some wonderful hay, BTW. Then a winter with hardly any snow. People were worried about drought earlier in the spring. Not any more.

Now... it's raining again! It held off until the crops were in, and since then seems like it rains almost every second day. Listening to thunder right now.

Guys are having trouble spraying, but other than that, so far it's nowhere near as wet as this time last year. However, the local grain guys are getting worried. Low spots are starting to fill up with water again.

[smcgrath76]

Pretty good here right now. We missed
some patchy rains and got some others.
Last Wednesday we got 1/2" here and when I
went to help paint our local hall the
grass wasn't even wet. Last night we got
nothing (2 100ths on my fancy
weatherstation), but I was coaching ball
in Lloyd and we got rained out big time.

[grassfarmer]

We could take more @ 3 inches through April/May
and 2.5 in June so far. Missed a heck of a storm today
it seems - just back from southern AB delivering a
bull and HWY2 was wet all the way from Crossfield to
Sylvan Lake. Hail in the ditch at the N and S edges
and unbelievable amounts of water in the fields
particularly from Innisfail to Sylvan. Fields that were
relatively dry this am have lakes in them tonight.
Completely dry here today though.

[burnt]

Here in southern Ontario we were really cold and dry all spring. Locally, we had almost no rain since the snow left in early March. This was after a really weird winter that saw a lot of rain in Jan. and Feb. which put the water table up really good.

So after a super dry spring we finally got almost 2.5inches in the past two weeks, perfect for crops. The hay is really short due to heavy late frosts and too little timely moisture.

[perfecho]

Looking good here, just south of Edmonton......about 2.5" in last 10 days. In a perfect world, would dry up a bit so as spraying could be done without leaving tracks.
Really enjoying sitting outside these days....smell of lilacs beside deck, butterflies all over, birds singing away....and no mosquitos! Wondering it this is going to change soon?

[ASRG]

ALLFARMER: If you would share......what are those heifers going to cost you? Do you see this as a better way than buying bred hfrs. in the fall? Do you have the bull power in place?

[ALLFARMER]

ASRG Hoping to pick them up for $1100/ea
900lb animals. Going to make the 6 hr drive
down to buy them myself. Need to visit family at
Westlock anyway, been kind of avoiding that, had
too face it this past winter dad has no idea who I
am anymore. Anyway have 4 very good younger
bulls (2yr old & 3,3,4) so good for what 30 each?
That's 120 so likely will have 128 to
breed....close enough??? My best guess is bred
heifers 1800 to 2000 this fall/winter. Looking at
the cattle futures charts cattle are overall trending
upward. If we start getting some real, amount to
something rain I plan to keep back a large
percentage of heifers for replacements. $1800 to
$2000 an animal is way too much for me
personally.

[SADIE]

Gardiner Dam area-----soft rains every 2-3 days. Couldn't get the last 5 pairs to PFRA pasture --corral areas just too wet to haul out.

Crops are lush, grass is lush. The third year now no need for starting pumps to irrigate hay or crop land. Good start this year again.

Open replacement heifers this spring in Saskatoon $1325.00 tops in sale. $1275.00 average.

Breds this fall????

[ASRG]

ALLFARMER: Sounds like a good idea. I doubt you would be able to buy bred heifers of any kind of quality for under $1600 this fall....so you should come out way ahead buying at $1100-$1200 now.
I have kept some black heifers out of my best cows and intend to breed them black. Going to turn the bull out June 20 for April 1 calves. Not sure if I will sell them in the fall or calve them out. I guess I'll see what the prices are in the fall.

[ALLFARMER]

Turned our bulls out last year June 28, first calf
Mar 28 so ya June 20th your should for sure
have calves by April. Better run neighbor wants
to trade track hoe hours for my dozer usage. I
have never run a track hoe before so today might
just be the day!

[grassfarmer]

If your 4 "very good young bulls" can only cover 120
heifers I wonder what they are very good at? I'd be
quite confident two of our 2 year olds would breed
120 heifers, maybe throw in a third if you have less
experience and want to feel re-assured.

[greybeard]

Have you still got some 2yr olds suitable for heifers?