Drove from West of Red Deer through Stettler, Provost Unity, Saskatoon, Humboldt, Canora, Yorkton, Returning via Nokomis, Outlook, Rosetown, Kindersley, Oyen, Hanna, Trochu, Innisfail.
#1 observation, is that mother nature doesn't play fair, some very ugly, and some spectacular crops, often within a few miles, I assume spotty showers are to thank? Having made a similiar trip in 2002, I would say that this drought is not on the same scale, at least in these regions. The ugly is very ugly, worst was between Oyen and Cereal. And around Cadogan( eastern Alberta)
I didn't see any respectable hay crops or pastures outside of my own little area. Although they are starting to green up again in places. Alta Canola crops were nearly done flowering, Eastern Sask has a long ways to go, water could still help many of them. I'd say all cereals are beyond help.
It looked to me like most places must have had a big rain event some time during the growing season. Most crops had apparent drown out areas( not the case on my farm). Is that what happened, or is there somthing else going on?
On a normal "dry" year, we would be the last place to start complaining, and it would be steadily worse east of Hwy 2(Ab) but this year, there were patches of very good crops, lodged and lush far east of hwy 2, even out to Hanna, and that area appears to be in the worst area on the map.
Klause is correct, his area is a garden spot this year, along with an area SW of there on my return trip.
I guess I don't know what average is in many of the places I went through, but most didn't look as bad as I expected. But maybe everyone in the traditional dry areas now expects 100 bu everything, it looks like they fertilize for it at least?
#1 observation, is that mother nature doesn't play fair, some very ugly, and some spectacular crops, often within a few miles, I assume spotty showers are to thank? Having made a similiar trip in 2002, I would say that this drought is not on the same scale, at least in these regions. The ugly is very ugly, worst was between Oyen and Cereal. And around Cadogan( eastern Alberta)
I didn't see any respectable hay crops or pastures outside of my own little area. Although they are starting to green up again in places. Alta Canola crops were nearly done flowering, Eastern Sask has a long ways to go, water could still help many of them. I'd say all cereals are beyond help.
It looked to me like most places must have had a big rain event some time during the growing season. Most crops had apparent drown out areas( not the case on my farm). Is that what happened, or is there somthing else going on?
On a normal "dry" year, we would be the last place to start complaining, and it would be steadily worse east of Hwy 2(Ab) but this year, there were patches of very good crops, lodged and lush far east of hwy 2, even out to Hanna, and that area appears to be in the worst area on the map.
Klause is correct, his area is a garden spot this year, along with an area SW of there on my return trip.
I guess I don't know what average is in many of the places I went through, but most didn't look as bad as I expected. But maybe everyone in the traditional dry areas now expects 100 bu everything, it looks like they fertilize for it at least?
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