While spring itself officially begins on the 21st of March, in conjunction with the equinox, as Canadians well know, the true weather of the season oft comes far later. With Medstead being well north of 50 degrees latitude, the cold, frost and ice are much more prevalent than those lower in latitude.
Saskatchewan is a province with a strong agricultural focus, and the RM and Village of Medstead is not exempt from this statement. Farming is a noble line of work, contributing to the province’s and country’s national economy in a very large way. It does, however, exist in a niche environment given all of the risks to the potential crop. These vary from pests, to drought, to flood, to frost. Within the blessing of the parameters that allow for the flourishing of crops, the region of Medstead farms everything from pulses to cereals.
As we are now well into April, the issue of prevalence for this season is undoubtedly the literal tonnes of snow yet to melt on the hectares of field within the area. According to Glenn Schmidt, Agronomist at Cavalier Agrow in Medstead, it is not quite yet time to worry. Schmidt notes that if there is still snow on the ground by the 10th of May, that there will be cause for concern, however notes himself as a believer of averages; that with time, matters will even out.
Schmidt notes that, as an average taken over the last 50 years, seeding earlier does produce higher yields. In order for seeding to be conducted, the ground must be dry, meaning the snow must have melted and the soil had time to lose its moisture to the sun. Schmidt does note that while these weather patterns are not recently typical, it is not an unheard of phenomenon. That being said, the agronomist does note that this level of snow cover is abnormal for the last 10 years.
Two representatives at the Farmers Distress Line, one a shift worker and the other, Ms. Thorson, noted an increase in calls to the line this year. That being said, as the statistics for this year have yet to be analysed in any detail, these calls cannot be entirely attributed to late spring induced stress.
There are many Medstead locals who note significant differences between this and the previous year. Cereal farmers would typically be seeing sprouts by this time of the year, whereas those with pulses would see less pressure to keep to the calendar. In general conversations with local farmers and their families, the general consensus is that there is quite a limit to the actual stress. Numerous folk indicate that the angst is more easily attributed to excitement to get to work, and not a concern for the crops themselves.
Many have noted that it is typical to forget how often nature does throw curveballs to the farming community. Though the agronomist notes that later seeding can induce an uptick in pests, it is still the lesser of two evils, and much preferred to a drought. Schmidt also notes that canola and peas flower into the hotter period and could possibly be affected more. With that in mind, the overwhelming sensation is a calm demeanour to the situation.
Though there is worry, it is not defeatist by any stretch. Instead, Medsteaders keep to their beliefs that things will work out, and that ultimately, things will even out. The calm found amongst the locals in the face of what could be a scary prospect to someone new to farming, shows well the resiliency of spirit of the workers as well as the trends of intergenerational farming, where those now doing the work know that they have made it through before and will continue to do so into the future.
