Manitoba Agriculture reports the yields and quality of the majority of this year’s crops are above the five-year average. Dennis Lange, a pulse and soybean specialist with Manitoba Agriculture and editor of the provincial crop report, says the harvest is sitting at 95 percent complete across the province.
When we’re looking at some of the spring cereal grains, spring wheat right now is ranging this year from 65 to 95 bushels an acre. Quality in most regions is good this year and protein levels are 13 and a half to 16 percent. How that yield compares to previous years, typically the five-year average would be 60 bushels so were kind of in that mix for the five-year average.
When you look at some of our other crops, like barley for example, we’re sitting at ranging this year from 80 to 120 bushels an acre, quality overall is good and the five-year average is 74 so a little above the five-year average in that right now. Oats ranged this year from 110 to 180 and some light test weights in some areas. There were some 37-pound oats but a lot of it was above 40, in that 40 pounds per bushel range. Our five-year average for oats is 102 bushels per acre, so we’re above that for sure.
Corn right now, as you move into the corn, yields are coming off right now anywhere from 120 to 180 bushels an acre and the average is somewhere in that 150 to 180 range. Canola yields this years are variable across the province ranging from 25 to 65 bushels an acre, so quite a range. When you look at the pulses, for soybeans in particular, yields range anywhere from 34 to 65 bushels an acre this year and the provincial average is expected to be somewhere in that 40 bushel per acre range, maybe a little bit higher. Our five-year average for soybeans is 35.
~ Dennis Lange, Manitoba Agriculture
Lange says overall it’s been a really good fall and it’s nice to be sitting at almost the end of October with all of the crops with the exception corn and sunflowers in the bin.
