When was the last time it was dry?

[freewheat]

So a little fun. When was the last time
in your area that a lack of rain
actually affected crop yields
negatively?

I'll start.

Ummmm, never in recorded history. There
was two times where I felt it would be
great if we got a rain, in 2001, and in
2003, but they turned out stellar. The
crops were great. Other talk about 1988.
It was stellar here as well. The dirty
thirties? There is a reason so many
moved up here from the droughted
southwest, the crops were not affected
by the drough around these parts.

So my answer is NEVER have our crops
here been short enough on moisture to
harm yield.

Now flip it around. When have your crops
suffered from too much rain? Almost
every year. I am positive that in my 20
year career, 15 of those years we could
have used less rain.

To conclude, should I be raising
livestock on this farm, and saying heck
with grain? It seems the climate has
changed enough in my career. It used to
be such a great area to grow grain, and
then 2004 came, and since then it has
been a joke. So will the good years come
again, or should I order 2000 ewes?

[furrowtickler]

2000, 2001, 2002, 2003. Last spring until end
June - this whole past fall/ winter until last
weekend. And I mean dry fukin dry

[ALLFARMER]

Ya if your 25 years old or younger lol. I was
friends with a guy who had 1000 ewes, and I had
a few myself. Feed requirements for 7 ewes to 1
cow equivalent look good. The problem is they
lambs die way to easily.

[ALLFARMER]

O ya and the ones with big black x's painted on
them they kick lol

[freewheat]

Hey All farmer, even if I can keep one
lamb per ewe alive, your looking at an
equivalent of 1400 dollars off of a cow, 4
months after calving!

[farmaholic]

I don't care where someone chooses to farm, when Mother Nature is always the dealer, seldom will the results always be in our favour. Too dry, too wet, too cold, too hot, to windy, too much, too little------TOO BAD!!!

[fjlip]

1988 16bu. wht/acre, 16 of canola.
2002 18 bu. wht/acre, 20 of canola
Both years too dry.

1993 wet and cold, 2007 too wet, 2010 the worst in my 40 years, triple the average precip, the little seeded was very poor.
2011 most profitable year ever in the 2010 wet areas due to 70% seeded to canola coinciding with high prices.

Agree majority of time too wet, humid and COLD.

[SASKFARMER3]

Most to wet. We get periods in July where a rain
would be nice and sometimes miss but that just
takes you to a higher yield.
South of us in the 80's, drove through it every time
went to city.
Dad said one in 1961 probably the worst.

[freewheat]

FJ, I remember 2002. We were about 10
miles east of the "droughty" area. We had
excellent yields that year. Some canola
beat 50. Yet last year, when you say you
had your best profits, our crops were
pathetic. I had a crop insurance claim for
yield on canola for the first time in my
career! All because we got too much rain
early on. grrrr.....

[hedgehog]

free wheat, is it possible to drain your land? would that help?

[freewheat]

HEy hedgehog, we are on quite well
drained land with few potholes Until
lately,etc. Most land I farm has no
water to go around, though some I rent
is in the pothole zone more. The trouble
has been overwhelming precipitation. And
steady precip. The kind that is
incessant and with cloudy conditions
eliminating drying on the two days
between rain! lol I have wondered about
tile for some of the land, but then the
neighbors have to all be on board
downstream as well.

[ColevilleH2S]

After the 2001-2002-2003 drought I vowed never to complain about rain. And I haven't since.

In fact as I type, I can look outside my window and see gold falling from the sky. Little puddles of it are forming on the driveway.

Every area has it's issues... It was a long time ago but I remember it like yesterday (dream sequence begins). The guys from the Black soil zone, while I was taking the VocAg course at the University of Saskatchewan, used to look down their well hydrated noses at us lowly Brown soil zone guys and say, "Your organic matter levels are how low? Your average rain fall is only how much!? Why would anyone farm in that shit area? You can't even grow Canola down there. Only morons would waste their time farming the short grass prairie."

Well look WHO'S LAUGHING NOW JERKS! GO SUCK ON A RAIN CLOUD!

(Snapping out of it) Well I'm really not bitter at all am I ;-) Just kidding.

Here's to everyone getting the crop in <u>SAFELY</u> (as I open a beer) cheers.

[sawfly]

no complaints here either.
the 80s were mostly bad except 86

02 planted new pea seed.
combined it because i wanted my seed back. yield 2.5 bushel peas. and 2 bushel grass hoppers. yuck

crop ins. made us combine 400 acres
out of4200 ,on that , wheat yield 7 bushel

i too used to think that we got more rain than the south west. the last 10 -15 years have proven that wrong.

[bucket]

2009

Great year.

[wheatking16]

ColevilleH2S,

I had the exact same experience.

Let it rain.