Heavy rain disrupts seeding for some Alberta farmers
Alberta seeding delays slow spring fieldwork as heavy rain floods some farms See how the same storms are boosting soil moisture, pastures and livestock water
Heavy rainfall across central and southern Alberta has slowed seeding for some farmers while improving moisture conditions for others.
In St. Paul County, farmer Elizabeth Robbie said wet fields, mud and flooding have kept her from finishing about 700 to 800 acres of seeding. She said some roads and culverts are overwhelmed and that she is still too far behind to know whether any newly planted crops were damaged.
Weather officials said parts of the province could see 50 to 100 millimetres of rain by midweek, with some areas already recording close to a month’s worth of precipitation in just a couple of days. Agricultural specialists said that while the rain is causing delays and erosion in some places, it is also helping rebuild soil moisture after dry conditions and improving pasture and water supplies for livestock.