Farmers throughout southern Alberta are tending to their fields following a Mother Nature prompted delay,
The record snow fall of last week caught many in the agricultural industry off guard, blanketing crops under several centimetres of heavy, wet powder.
Bob Jackson, a farmer for 47 years, has never seen September weather like the snow fall which covered his property near Blackie on Wednesday. The snow, and the subsequent melt, left Jackson’s canola field a wet mess.
On Tuesday, nearly a week after the snow, the ground and crops were dry enough for Jackson to combine.
Jackson says he’s taking the unusual weather in stride and it would be counterproductive to become angry with the hand he’s been dealt.
“I just think ‘Okay, I’ve got a bigger job to do and I’ve got to do it’,” said Jackson. “If I stood around and got upset about that, it’s non-productive.”
One of the challenges of the 2014 harvest is the heavy snow has left crops pressed to the ground. In previous decades, the scenario would have been disastrous, but current technology allows farmers to recover the majority of their potential yield.
Swathers are capable of lifting fallen crop into a combine manageable swath.
According to Jackson, the 2014 yield should be comparable to, or better than, that of recent years. If the favourable weather conditions continue, Jackson predicts he could harvest his 1,500 acres in just over a week’s time.
