June 5, 2009

Canola planting in Saskatchewan and Alberta is virtually complete, according to a crop update issued by the Canola Council of Canada for the week ended Wednesday (June 3).

In Manitoba, the seeding of canola is variable, ranging from 5 percent to 100 percent complete.

In Alberta and Saskatchewan, where soil moisture is adequate for germination, cool temperatures and late-spring frosts have stalled canola growth and development.

Emerged fields range from the two- or three-leaf stage of development.

Where conditions are dry, as in south and west-central Saskatchewan and southeast-central Alberta, some canola is stranded in dry soil and will require rainfall to stimulate germination, the CCC said.

About 30 percent of the early seeded canola in Manitoba has emerged. Seeding was nearing completion in the southwest and about 50 percent of the canola has emerged. Excess moisture continues to challenge producers in the eastern and interlake regions.

Frost was widespread Tuesday morning across western Canada, the CCC said.

Overnight lows were recorded in the neighbourhood of zero to minus 2 degrees Celsius with some areas reporting minus 3 degrees. Temperatures in this range are usually labelled a "light frost" and significant crop damage is not expected.

Flea beetle activity intensified during the reporting period and some spraying was occurring in central and northwestern Manitoba, and in many locations in Saskatchewan and Alberta, the CCC said.

Reports of cutworms have been reported in isolated fields across western Canada.