For the Period May 30 to June 5, 2017

Seeding operations are almost complete as 94 per cent of the crop is now in the ground, according to Saskatchewan Agriculture’s weekly Crop Report. This is slightly ahead of the five-year (2012-2016) seeding average for this time of year of 93 per cent. While most producers in the province have wrapped up seeding, those in parts of the northern regions will need more time.

With 98 per cent of the crop in the ground, seeding is essentially complete in the southeastern and southwestern regions. Ninety-six per cent is seeded in the east-central region; 95 per cent in the west-central region; 88 per cent in the northwest and 84 per cent in the northeast.

Scattered rain showers throughout the week brought varying amounts of rain to the province. Most areas received trace-to-small amounts of rain, although some areas received larger amounts. A significant rain is needed in much of the province to help crops germinate and emerge and to replenish topsoil moisture.

Topsoil moisture conditions are deteriorating in many southern parts of the province. Persistent strong winds and lack of moisture are drying up fields and delaying crop maturity. There are concerns in areas of the southeast that crop and hay yields will be affected if rain is not received soon. Provincially, cropland topsoil moisture is rated as five per cent surplus, 65 per cent adequate, 26 per cent short and four per cent very short. Hay land and pasture topsoil moisture is rated as five per cent surplus, 53 per cent adequate, 32 per cent short and 10 per cent very short.

Crop development has been delayed in much of the province and most crops are behind their normal developmental stages for this time of year. The majority of crop damage this past week was caused by strong winds, lack of moisture, frost and insects such as flea beetles and cutworms.

Producers are busy seeding and trying to control weeds when the wind is calm.

SaskPower reports that there have been 132 reports this year of farm equipment coming in contact with power poles or lines, with 109 of those incidents happening in May. Producers are urged to be especially careful when using equipment around power lines. Safety information is available at www.saskpower.com/safety.

Today is Graduation Day for 36 Grade 12 students in Southey.  The RM of Cupar #218 would like to extend best wishes to:

• Karson Becker
• Journey Cyr
• Taylor Daniel
• Austin David
•  Caden Davies
• Lora Fuessel
• Haydn Galenzoski
• Kyle Gartener
• Janae Gerrard
• Matthew Golly
• Meagan Golly
• Nathaniel Gross
• Spenser Gross
• Garrett Harden
• Kennedi Harper
• Eric Kasick
• Luke Klarer
• Lane Knapp
• Dyllan Krochak
• Tanner Manz
• Tyson Manz
• Alexander Massier
• Amanda Mohr
• Sierra Mohr
• Kaiden Nameth
• Brooklyn Nordgulen
• Anthony Perry
• Kaylah Racz
• Aislinn Roske
• Brayden Sentes
• Daniel Sinclair
• Boyd Wagner
• Hayley Wagner
• Keegan Walker
• Drew Wilde
• Jessica Zepick

Best of Luck in your future endeavours

The Saskatchewan Ministry of Environment has entered into a Land Management Trust Agreement with Ducks Unlimited Canada, the Nature Conservancy of Canada and the Saskatchewan Wildlife Federation to assume the management of all provincial Fish and Wildlife Development Fund (FWDF) Wildlife Lands. Regulatory activities relating to these Crown lands will remain with the Ministry.

The FWDF, through a portion of licence fees from hunters and trappers, has secured approximately 168,000 acres of wildlife habitat within 123 municipalities in the agricultural portion of the province. These lands provide examples of a variety of natural landscapes and are accessible to hunters, trappers and the public. Vehicle use is restricted to prevent damage to the habitat. 

Land management will focus on activities that will maintain or improve wildlife habitat while providing mutual benefits to the agriculture and conservation communities. Some of these management activities include haying, grazing, forest harvest, reforestation and other native plantings, and hazard removal.  There will also be an emphasis on the control of noxious or invasive species and nuisance wildlife. The benefit of any of these management initiatives will be determined on a case by case basis. The FWDF website provides a list of these wildlife lands by municipality.

The public is encouraged to visit the website at: www.FWDF.ca or call the toll-free number at: 1-844-306-FWDF (3933) for more details on permitted activities, opportunities or enquiries.

-30-

Darrell Crabbe

Executive Director

Saskatchewan Wildlife Federation

P: 306-694-8812

E: [email protected]

Premises Identification Is a Requirement for Livestock Traceability

For the Period May 23 to 29, 2017

Saskatchewan producers now have 81 per cent of the 2017 crop in the ground, right in line with the five-year (2012-2016) seeding average for this time of year of 82 per cent. Wet field conditions and frequent rainfall in many northern areas have delayed progress, and producers there will need a couple more weeks of warm and dry weather.

Seeding is most advanced in the southeast, where producers have 95 per cent of the crop in the ground. Ninety-four per cent is seeded in the southwest; 80 per cent in the west-central region; 79 per cent in the east-central region; 76 per cent in the northwest and 43 per cent in the northeast.

Ninety-six per cent of the lentils, 95 per cent of the field peas, 92 per cent of the durum, 91 per cent of the soybeans, 81 per cent of the spring wheat, 80 per cent of the flax, 78 per cent of the mustard, 76 per cent of the canola and 73 per cent of the barley have now been seeded.

A slowly moving weather system brought significant rainfall to many areas in the north last week, but missed most of the central and southern parts of the province. The Nipawin area received 65 mm of rain, while many parts of central and southern Saskatchewan received nothing. Fields in the north remain very wet, while many fields in other parts of the province are in need of rain to help crops germinate and emerge.

Provincially, cropland topsoil moisture is rated as 11 per cent surplus, 75 per cent adequate, 12 per cent short and two per cent very short. Hay land and pasture topsoil moisture is rated as five per cent surplus, 70 per cent adequate, 23 per cent short and two per cent very short.

Overall, emerged crops are in fair-to-excellent condition, but emergence has been delayed in many areas by the cool weather and dry field conditions. The majority of crop damage this week was caused by strong winds, frost, hail, localized flooding and lack of moisture. Flea beetles and cutworms have been reported in canola crops, and some fields have had to be re-seeded.

Producers are busy seeding, controlling weeds and picking rocks.

SaskPower reports that there have been 91 incidents in May of farm equipment coming in contact with power poles or lines, including 15 incidents between May 22 and 27 alone. Weekly and monthly totals are adjusted on an ongoing basis, as some incidents are not reported to SaskPower immediately after they occur. Producers are urged to be especially careful when using equipment around power lines. Safety information is available on the SaskPower Safety Webpage.

Don’t forget to protect your crops from hail and fire damage with Saskatchewan Municipal Hail Insurance and its partner company Additional Municipal Hail Insurance.  Come see me for rates and info.

https://www.facebook.com/SaskatchewanTornado/photos/a.519270554822172.1073741828.517342678348293/1415439015205317/?type=3http://

Healthy Built Environments

The Health Promotion team works with rural and urban municipalities and community organizations to make the healthy choice the easy choice within the built environment. The built environment is the “human made or physical spaces in which people live, work and play. These include our homes, communities, schools, workplaces, parks/recreation areas, business areas and transportation systems”. The way we design and structure our built environments can either improve mental health, physical activity levels and nutrition or prevent our ability to be the best we can be.

Healthy built environments are made up of:

• A food system that has safe, affordable and equal access to healthy food, protects and restores environment and supports the local economy;
• Transportation networks that are safe, accessible, and prioritizes active transportation, such as walking or biking to places such as work, schools, parks and recreation and healthy food;
• Neighbourhood design where people can easily access day to day services, which create chances for social interaction;
• Housing that is affordable, accessible and free of environmental and physical hazards; and
• Natural environments which are protected, connected and accessible for all to enjoy.

Our work with communities can range from helping to start community walking tours or bicycle paths to promote physical activity or working with neighbourhood corner stores or recreation facilities to increase access to healthy foods. We also provide further education sessions and workshops on healthy design and how to maximize your communities’ health potential. We talk with the community to identify a process that works for that specific community. The need is determined by the community, for the community.

Community Assessments: Partnered with the community, our focus is to assess and take action to reduce the risk factors and in the end increase the health in the whole community.

Review of Official Community Plans & Development Reviews: Working with a team (including Emergency Medical Services, Environmental Health and the medical health officer) development applications and official plans are looked at through a health lens. This lens blends traditional planning ideas such as land use, transportation, community facilities, parks and open spaces with healthy themes such as physical activity, public safety, healthy food access, mental health, air and water quality and social inclusion.

Rural Active Living Assessment (RALA): Tools are designed to do a complete active living audit of rural communities. This includes collecting data on physical environment features and amenities, community characteristics, community programs and policies that could potentially impact levels of physical activity among residents in your community.

For more information or for assistance in planning an assessment in your community,

please contact us at 306.766.7283 or [email protected]

The 2016/17 Cupar School yearbook is now available to order.  This can be done on-line at YBPay.lifetouch.com – just enter the ID code 10119117.  Yearbooks are $25 and will be delivered in September.  Thank you for your support!

For the Period May 16 to 22, 2017

Seeding is advancing quickly in the province thanks to warm, dry weather. Producers now have 60 per cent of the provincial crop in the ground, according to Saskatchewan Agriculture’s weekly Crop Report. The five-year (2012-2016) seeding average for this time of year is 65 per cent. Many producers have completed seeding operations while others will need several more weeks of warm, dry weather. At this time, it is estimated that five per cent of acres will not be seeded due to excess moisture.

Seeding is most advanced in the southeast, where producers have 80 per cent of the crop in the ground. Seventy-six per cent is seeded in the southwest; 59 per cent in the west-central region; 53 per cent in the east-central region; 43 per cent in the northwest and 25 per cent in the northeast.

Much of the province did not receive any moisture this past week, although the Vonda area reported 18 mm. Fields remain wet in more northern regions while fields in other parts of the province are in need of rain to help crops germinate and emerge.

Provincially, cropland topsoil moisture is rated as 11 per cent surplus, 79 per cent adequate, nine per cent short and one per cent very short. Hay land and pasture topsoil moisture is rated as seven per cent surplus, 76 per cent adequate, 15 per cent short and two per cent very short.

The majority of crops are either at or behind normal developmental stages for this time of year. Overall, emerged crops are in good condition, although there has been some damage caused by strong winds, localized flooding and lack of moisture. Hard frost last week damaged some alfalfa, winter cereal and canola fields; some fields will be re-seeded in the coming weeks.

Pasture conditions are rated as 15 per cent excellent, 53 per cent good, 24 per cent fair, seven per cent poor and one per cent very poor.

SaskPower reports that there were 23 power line contacts involving farm equipment between May 15 and 21 (67 in May to date), and encourages farmers to use caution. Safety information is available at www.saskpower.com/safety.

Producers are busy seeding, controlling weeds and moving cattle