Adverse weather slows pace of seeding to below 5-year average

High winds and a cool spring have caused a lag in Manitoba’s crop-planting season.

At this time last year, more than half of crops — at least 57 per cent — had been seeded, according to reports. By Tuesday, just 37 per cent of 2026 seeding was complete.

The pace falls behind the five-year average: 43 per cent of seeding is usually done by May 19.

A crop report from the Manitoba government points to “extremely high winds” and rainfall slowing progress.

Farmers in southwestern Manitoba logged wind gusts up to 115 km/h last week, forcing some producers off their fields, the report says.

Farms in northwest, central and Interlake regions also experienced strong winds.

Topsoil was blown around, which could damage some of the “more tender crops” coming out of the ground, said Jill Verwey, president of the Keystone Agricultural Producers.

She was travelling south of Portage la Prairie on Tuesday, and “I don’t see a lot of activity out in the fields,” Verwey said. “It’s a little tacky out there after the rain we had.”

In many cases, the rain was needed, Verwey added; it’s been a “dry spring.”

Winnipeg has marked 7.6 millimetres of precipitation so far in May, Environment Canada data show. It had received 30.4 mm the year before.

“Just hoping for Mother Nature to give us some warmer weather and give producers a chance to finish getting this year’s crop in the ground,” Verwey said.

Pasture conditions are also behind normal for this time of year, the crop report states. Many farms are weeks away from having enough forage to release cattle onto open pastures.

It’s led some farmers to use stockpiled forages more than expected or buy other sources of feed, said Carson Callum, chief executive of the Manitoba Beef Producers.

Like Verwey, he’s hoping for warmer weather: “(Then) we’ll really start seeing a lot of things starting to shape up.”

In northwestern Manitoba, cool temperatures, delayed growth and high winds have made crop spraying more difficult. Standing water is hindering farmers in the region, according to the government report.

It’s too soon to say whether Manitoba producers will take a hit from the late start, Verwey said, adding conditions for the rest of May and June will have a big impact.

Zack Koscielny, chair of the Manitoba Forage and Grassland Association, paused seeding on his Strathclair farm this week due to rain. If the weather unrolls as forecast, “we all should be in pretty good shape,” he said.

The average mean temperature in Winnipeg this month, as of May 20, was 6.2 C. Last year, the average mean for May was 14.9 C.

gabrielle.piche@winnipegfreepress.com