Some Delays but Saskatchewan Harvest Nears Three-Quarters Complete

Sep 20, 2024

The Saskatchewan harvest has pushed to around three-quarters complete, despite some weather-related delays this past week.

Thursday’s weekly crop report pegged the overall provincial harvest at 74% done as of Monday, up 13 points from the previous week. That is well ahead of the five- and 10-year averages of 63% and 58% complete, respectively, but still behind 82% last year.

Many areas of the province received rainfall this past week which caused producers to “briefly pause harvest.,” the report said.

The Indian Head area received the most rainfall this past week with 49 mm. The Marsden and Milden areas closely followed with 48 mm and 42 mm of precipitation, respectively. Other areas to receive notable rainfall include the Lizard Lake area with 41 mm and the Francis and North Battleford areas with 39 mm each.

Despite slowing fieldwork, the precipitation was welcomed by producers amid overly dry soil conditions in many locations.

The harvest is nearly wrapped up in the province’s Southwest Region, where an estimated 95% of crops were in the bin as of Monday. The Southeast Region was next with the harvest at 77% complete, followed by the East-Central, West-Central, and Northwest regions, all at 63% done. The Northeast harvest reached 58% complete as of Monday.

The winter wheat, triticale and field pea crop harvest is now complete, with lentils and fall rye very close to finishing up. Leading all spring-seeded cereals, durum was 93% harvested as of Monday, followed by barley at 88%, spring wheat at 81%, oats at 73% and canary seed at 49%. For oilseed crops, mustard leads harvest progress at 90%. Many producers are currently working to get canola crops harvested, with 47% in the bin. Flax and soybeans are the furthest behind in harvest progress, at 33% and 25%.

Topsoil moisture conditions for cropland were rated 1% surplus, 41% adequate, 37% short, and 21% very short as of Monday, an improvement from 1% surplus, 33% adequate, 43% short, and 23% very short the previous week.

Wind and waterfowl were the main causes of crop damage this past week. Grasshopper activity remains high in some areas, continuing to damage crops.

Southeast:

Harvest is now 77 per cent complete in the southeast, which is up 12 per cent from last week. This is a lower increase than the last reporting period, which is due to scattered rainfall in the region causing harvest delays. This is still greater than the five-year average of 66 per cent and 10-year average of 67 per cent.

There was a significant amount of rainfall in certain areas during this reporting period. The Indian Head area received the most rainfall in the province with 49 mm. The Francis area got 39 mm of rain, while the Trossachs and Avonlea areas each received 28 mm.

The rainfall improved topsoil moisture conditions which were drying out prior to the rain. Cropland topsoil moisture is now 61 per cent adequate, 29 per cent short and 10 per cent very short.

Southwest:

Harvest is nearly complete in southwest Saskatchewan as 95 per cent of crops have been taken off, which continues to lead the province in harvest progress. Producers are significantly ahead of the five-year average of 77 per cent and the 10-year average of 73 per cent for harvest progress.

Some areas in the southwest received rain during this reporting period. The most rainfall seen in the southwest was around Richmound, which got 26 mm of precipitation, followed by areas around Dollard and Leader that received 15 mm.

The rain did not significantly impact topsoil moisture and conditions remain dry in the southwest. Cropland topsoil moisture is rated nine per cent adequate, 31 per cent short and 60 per cent very short.

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Video: Turning Plant Defense Into a Management Strategy

Turning Plant Defense Into a Management Strategy

Understanding how a plant responds to stress is one thing.

Using that knowledge to make better management decisions is another.

Systemic acquired resistance, or SAR, is the plant's more direct defense response. When stress or infection occurs, the plant begins signaling throughout its system and preparing defensive compounds.

But if we know that response exists, can we help prepare the plant before the stress arrives?

The answer starts with understanding what triggers the response and what the plant needs to carry it out.

The Trigger and the Fuel

Salicylic acid plays an important role in triggering the SAR pathway.

Think of it as turning the truck on.

The engine may be running, but it still needs fuel to do the work.

In this case, manganese plays an important role in supporting the enzyme systems involved in the plant's defensive response.

This makes manganese status an important part of the conversation. Whether a producer is using tissue testing, sap analysis, or simply scouting for visible deficiency symptoms, the goal is to make sure the plant has adequate manganese available.

Manganese is required in relatively small amounts, but that does not make its role small.

If the plant receives a signal to defend itself but lacks the nutrition needed to support that response, it may struggle to carry out the process efficiently.

The trigger matters.

The fuel matters too.

Prepare Before the Stress Arrives

The best time to think about stress management is before the plant is overwhelmed.

Once a crop is already struggling, management can quickly turn into a game of catch-up.

This is similar to nitrogen management. Once a plant becomes severely deficient, correcting the problem does not necessarily erase the time and yield potential already lost.

Plant defense can work the same way.

Low-rate, targeted approaches designed to support the SAR pathway may fit best ahead of an expected stress event rather than after significant damage has already occurred.

That requires producers to think about predictable stress.

We may not know exactly what the weather will do tomorrow, but we generally know summer heat is coming. We know certain field conditions increase disease pressure. We know a herbicide application can temporarily stress a crop as the plant processes the chemistry.

Even a properly timed and labeled herbicide application can create a temporary response in the plant.

That does not mean the herbicide is bad.

Weeds can create significantly more yield loss than the temporary stress caused by controlling them.

The question is not whether we should eliminate every stressor.

The question is whether we can better prepare the plant to manage necessary and predictable stress.

Not All Stress Is Bad

Stress is a normal part of plant growth.

A perfectly stress-free environment does not exist in the field.

In fact, some stress is necessary for normal plant development. A plant responds to wind, temperature, moisture, sunlight, and countless other environmental signals throughout the season.

The environment is stress.

The plant's job is to manage it.

Problems begin when the stress load becomes greater than the plant's ability to respond.

Extreme heat, drought, high salt concentrations, disease pressure, and even certain management practices can add to that load.

This is where understanding SAR becomes useful.

Instead of waiting until the plant is visibly struggling, producers can begin identifying periods when stress is likely and make management decisions around those windows.

ISR Starts With the Soil

While SAR is a more direct defense response, induced systemic resistance, or ISR, brings the conversation back to soil health.

The longevity of a farm is closely connected to the health of its soil.

Carbon plays a major role because it supports biological life within the soil. Bacteria, fungi, and other organisms interact with plant roots and influence how the plant grows, accesses nutrients, and prepares for stress.

This is why soil health cannot be reduced to one product or one application.

It is a system.

Keeping living plants in the field longer can support biological activity. Cover crops may fit some operations. Better water management can improve soil conditions.