This winter鈥檚 low snowfall means that minimal spring runoff throughout Saskatchewan is highly likely. The question arises: What does that mean for farms in the Estevan area?
Sherri Roberts, regional crop specialist with the Ministry of Agriculture said there is no single answer for what low runoff means for farmers in the area, due to the fact that minimal runoff depends on what the moisture conditions are, and have been, in different areas, on different land.
鈥淚t probably won鈥檛 be a problem for anyone in the southeast, except in areas that are short on moisture,鈥� said Roberts. 鈥淚t鈥檚 going to be spotty, depending on where you are.鈥�
She noted that areas near Minton, for example, will not benefit from the reduced soil moisture that less runoff entails, since conditions have been drier, while it won鈥檛 be as much of a big deal for farmers in the Glenavon area.
鈥淭here were some areas near Estevan that have had some issues with late planting over the last couple of years because of that huge snow dump in the winter of 2013-2014,鈥� said Roberts. 鈥淭here were some fields that people were really late getting into. They weren鈥檛 able to because of the moisture issue. I don鈥檛 think that鈥檚 going to be a big problem this year.鈥�
Roberts said because of the expected dryness some farmers in the southeast are predicting, at this rate, that聽 they鈥檒l be in the fields by March.
鈥淢aybe they are, maybe they鈥檙e not,鈥� Roberts said, with a chuckle. 鈥淲e鈥檙e talking about predictions they made a couple of weeks ago. We can, all of a sudden, end up with a bunch of rain in March. Moisture doesn鈥檛 need to necessarily come in the form of snow.鈥�
Roberts noted the anticipated dryness this spring and summer will be a blessing for many farmers who have had an excess of water in sloughs. With a dryer spring, some of the land that鈥檚 usually underwater will be farmable, provided it hasn鈥檛 been underwater for too long.
鈥淚n certain areas, they鈥檒l be getting land back when those sloughs empty, and they鈥檒l be able to farm there,鈥� said Roberts. 鈥淭hey鈥檒l be able to take the equipment right over there, and seed into those areas. It depends on how long those areas held water.鈥�
She noted that if an area has been underwater for more than five years, the soil will not be viable, and the drier conditions exposing more land won鈥檛 be beneficial. Meanwhile, if the land has only been submerged in a slough for a couple of years, or only periodically submerged, the land could be seeded.
Roberts said pastures and hay land are more benefitted by slow runoff so that moisture can run deep into the soil, but if the runoff is minimal, the dry conditions will be hard on such types of land, since a great deal of pasture and hay land is already under stress from the widespread dry weather of last summer.
Trying to predict the growing season is difficult because things can change a lot between the winter and spring. Another variable that is difficult to predict is the temperature.
Roberts said that even if moisture levels are ideal, improper soil temperature will prevent early seeding. If the soil isn鈥檛 warm enough, seeds won鈥檛 germinate, and will eventually rot.
鈥淚f you want to plant soybeans, for instance, you want your soil temperature to be at 10 degrees Celsius,鈥� said Roberts. 鈥淚t doesn鈥檛 matter if the snow鈥檚 all gone on your field and you can work in it. If the temperature isn鈥檛 right, you鈥檙e going to need to delay your seeding.鈥�
