Photo: Korey Peterson/iStock/Getty Images

Prairie forecast: Mild start, then a chance of storms

Issued Feb. 21, covering Feb. 21 to 28, 2024

Sunshine prevailed a fair bit more over the last forecast period than expected and so did the milder temperatures. Oh, sure there were a couple of cold nights, especially over the eastern half of the prairies, but overall, temperatures ended up being about 2 to 4 C warmer than what was forecasted.




Photo: James_Gabbert/iStock/Getty Images Plus

Prairie forecast: Dry and mild west, seasonal east

Issued Feb. 14, covering Feb 14 to 21, 2024

If you haven’t noticed, it has been an unusual winter, and that unusualness is causing all sorts of headaches with weather forecasting. In particular, cloud cover. In the last forecast period, it looked as if high pressure would dominate the weather bringing plenty of clear skies along with more seasonable temperatures.


Photo: Canada Beef Inc.

Klassen: Feeder market continues to climb

Canadian values appear to be one week behind the U.S. market

For the week ending February 10, Western Canadian the market for yearlings over 800 pounds was $3/cwt to $6/cwt compared to a week earlier. Feeder cattle suited for grass and calves were up $8/cwt to as much as $25/cwt in some cases compared to the week prior. Quality steers averaging 600 pounds were readily trading in the range of $410-$425 up from the range of $380-$395 last week.

Photo: Thinkstock

Prairie wheat weekly outlook: Prices down, especially for durum

Weaker Canadian dollar lends support, K.C., Chicago and Minneapolis wheat put pressure on prices

Wheat prices across the Canadian Prairies pulled back during the week ended Feb. 8. While there were moderate declines in Canadian Western Red Spring Wheat and Canada Prairie Red Spring Wheat, there were sharper losses for Canadian Western Amber Durum.


farmland for sale

A hundred years of Prairie farmland prices

Don’t bet the farm on that much-anticipated easing of interest rates

Farmland prices continue to go up like a helium balloon, leading to speculation that it might continue and speculation in land as a commodity. In this piece we will look at a long history and provide some guesses about the future. Anyone who thinks they can actually predict the future is living in dreamland. Figure […] Read more

This is a closeup of superb Valentine bleeding heart flowers. The plant likes soil to be evenly moist but not constantly wet. Allow surface soil to become dry to an inch deep or more between waterings. An eastern exposure is ideal and filtered light or mostly shade is preferred much of the day. Avoid scorching the plant from too much direct sunlight and excess heat. As soon as the first crop of blooms begins to show signs of exhaustion, cut back the entire plant once flowering is done. Sprinkle a complete fertilizer on the surrounding soil, moisten in and wait. If autumn frost doesn’t arrive too early, you’ve a good chance to enjoy a second flowering of bleeding heart during fall.

Odes to purple potatoes and to horticultural hearts

Also: an Alberta reader is on the hunt for a Bird of paradise

What’s it going to be this Valentine’s Day? Red roses, a box of chocolates and a corsage along with a singing card are standard. Or maybe you’ve created a one-of-a-kind, original Valentine’s Day card of your own? Perhaps a night out in town with a reservation for two at Mr. Mikes Steakhouse hits the spot. […] Read more


a 60-foot Pillar disc drill to seed hard red spring wheat

Earlier-than-early seeding

These farmers use soil temperature, rather than the calendar, to time seeding wheat

Not long ago, brothers Matthew and Farley Gould, who farm in east-central Alberta, had no idea of the resiliency of wheat seedlings against adverse growing conditions. But over the past three growing seasons they’ve seeded part of their hard red spring wheat crop early. How early? Soil temperatures have barely thawed, and germinated seedlings have […] Read more

File photo of winter wheat plants in snow. (Volodymyr Shtun/iStock/Getty Images)

Prairie forecast: Stormy start in the east, slightly cooler west

Issued Feb. 7, covering Feb. 7 to 14, 2024

You can’t say it has been a strange and interesting winter. First, we saw a wintery end to October, then fall moved back in for most of November and December before we finally saw a big old shot winter in mid-January. Now we have been dealing with spring like conditions over the last two weeks – what’s next? Well, it looks like winter is going to try and make a comeback.