Quality of Western Canadian malting barley 2018
Growing and harvesting conditions
The 2018 growing season began slowly, as winter-like weather lingered across the Prairies during March and April. The Prairie region was three to five degrees below normal during both months, which delayed snowmelt and the onset of planting.
Another concern was the dry conditions that were the result of the 2017 drought and the accompanying lack of subsoil moisture reserves. The winter precipitation was close to normal and even slightly above normal in most areas of the Prairies. The exceptions were Manitoba and the central and northern areas of Alberta, which received significantly below normal precipitation through the winter months.
Temperatures improved dramatically in May (Figure 1.1), which resulted in rapid planting progress in most areas. The precipitation during the month was well below normal, which helped boost planting progress. Rains during the last week of the month in northern growing areas caused some planting delays, but provided beneficial moisture. The dry weather persisted into June in most regions, but heavy rainfall was reported in the border region of Manitoba and Saskatchewan and northern Alberta.
Figure 1.1 Mean temperature differences from normal for May 2018
The pattern of dry conditions in the southern regions and rainfall in the north persisted into August (Figure 1.2). Above-normal temperatures also continued into the first half of July, but temperatures moderated by late July and August. The above-normal temperatures during the growing season boosted crop development, which allowed harvest to begin during the middle of August in the southern and central growing regions. The quality of the early harvested crop was very good.
Figure 1.2 Percent of average precipitation (Prairie Region) from April 1 to October 31, 2018
The first significant frost in the northern growing areas was reported in the first week of September, causing some damage to immature crops. The cooler than normal temperatures persisted through most of September (Figure 1.3) and October. The cool temperatures combined with persistent light to moderate rain/snowfall delayed the resumption of harvest until the second week of October. Two weeks of mild weather in October allowed most farmers in the northern areas to near completion of the harvest. There was significant quality degradation in unharvested crops in the northern grain belt.
Figure 1.3 Mean temperature differences from normal for September 2018
