Eye on the sky

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This article was published 31/03/2023 (891 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Two years ago, Jill Verwey was out in the fields, preparing for the new season.

That’s not happening this year — and it won’t for at least a few more weeks, if current forecasts are correct.

“I think most producers are getting anxious and getting ready (to get) out in the field,” said Verwey, the president of Keystone Agricultural Producers.

Manitoba has undergone a colder than normal month. If temperatures stay below freezing in March’s final days, Winnipeg will have lasted the entire month without a temperature above 0 C — its first time in 124 years.

“If there’s anything predictable about Mother Nature and her weather, it’s that she’s unpredictable,” Verwey noted.

Still, it’s too early to stress, she said.

Catherine Kroeker-Klassen’s family usually begins seeding at the end of April. If the grain farmer’s roughly 1,500 acres still have snow mid-April, then “we’re going to be pretty panicked,” Kroeker-Klassen said.

“That could have a ripple effect, depending on what kind of season we get for growing,” she said. “At this stage, we’re not panicked, but it’s a concern.”

Temperatures will likely hover below normal for the next couple weeks, according to Natalie Hasell, a warning preparedness meteorologist with Environment and Climate Change Canada.

The province won’t see “real seasonal values” until mid-April, according to current forecasts, Hasell said.

“We will be soon getting into a freeze-thaw cycle,” she noted. “It could lead to really poor road conditions.”

It’s potentially dangerous for Manitobans — icy streets call for emergency kits in vehicles, Hasell said.

However, the conditions might lead to a slow snow melt, which many farmers are wishing for.

“If we get a nice slow melt, that soaks into the ground a little better,” said Kroeker-Klassen, who farms near Landmark.

The longer the cold temperatures linger, the more likely a fast melt will occur, said Larry Wegner, who handles producer relations for the Manitoba Forage and Grassland Association.

“If we have a quick thaw, it is what it is — we deal with it,” Wegner said. “Every day, we get up, we dress according to the day. We have no idea what tomorrow’s going to do.”

He’s not yet concerned about the forage and grassland industry. There’s lots of time for the weather to warm, he said.

Lambing, on the other hand, has become more challenging. Farmers must keep lambs warm and dry. Wegner, who has 55 ewes with lambs this year, is bringing newborns and mothers into a small barn.

“Once they’re a day old, or a couple days old, they can handle it,” he said. “If they’re not lambing, they’re fine in this weather.”

Beef producers are facing the same struggle with calves and mother cows, said Carson Callum, general manager of the Manitoba Beef Producers.

“It just adds another layer of complexity,” Callum said of the weather. “Producers are used to changing things up when they need to, but the cold has definitely impacted them.”

There’s a need for extra shelter, bedding, and maybe straw and feed to keep the calves healthy, Callum said.

The colder temperatures haven’t led to mass casualties of young cows, he added. He’s not worried about beef producers’ food supply — last year resulted in a more robust feed production, he said.

As of Thursday afternoon, Environment Canada forecasted -1 C as Winnipeg’s high for today. It falls short of 0 C, meaning, if it happens, this March will match 1899 in its lack of above-freezing days.

gabrielle.piche@winnipegfreepress.com