Flooding for Eastern Prairies; Western Areas Still Dry

The month of April has brought new problems for the parts of the eastern Prairies, but more of the same old woes for the southwest. 

As can be seen on the map below, soil moisture across much of Manitoba and into southeastern Saskatchewan was running 115% to 150% of normal as of April 25 – even before more precipitation fell this past weekend. In contrast, soil moisture levels in some pockets of Alberta, particularly southeast of Calgary, were less than 40% of normal. 

The dryness farther west is continuing and further exacerbating the punishing drought that slashed crop yields last year, while heavy precipitation in the east has improved or eliminated drought in some areas but is now causing flooding and delaying planting. 

Since April 1, southern and southeastern Manitoba and the US portion of the Red River basin has received 120 to 160 mm of precipitation, which is between 400 to 600% of normal. Overland flooding is continuing in many portions of central and southern Manitoba, especially in the Red River valley and the Interlake. Some of the greatest precipitation amounts in Manitoba also bled over the border into southeastern Saskatchewan, with April totals of between 50 and 75 mm in the wettest areas of that province. 

Released last week, the latest monthly edition of the Canadian Agricultural Weather Prognosticator from World Weather Inc. suggested farmers in much of soggy central and southern Manitoba will now be kept out of their fields through the middle of May. Meanwhile, more trouble could also be on the way, it said, with a turn to warmer temperatures around the second half of this month likely to trigger further precipitation. 

“Seasonal warming later in May and June will return the wetter bias, leading to additional concern over spring planting for much of Manitoba and southeastern Saskatchewan,” the report said. 

As for the drier western areas, the Prognosticator said farmers will need to be patient. The greatest rainfall in the drought areas is unlikely to show up until late in May - and more likely June, July and August, it said.