This is one of the weather stations Shannon Winny has on the family farm in Saskatchewan. The round black device at the top is the ultrasonic wind speed sensor. The station, powered by a small solar panel, can also collect data on rainfall, temperature, dew point, humidity, solar radiation and leaf wetness. The cables near the bottom are part of an add-on feature for soil moisture sensing. Basic models start around $1,100. | Photo: Courtesy of Shannon Winny


On-farm weather stations help guide management decisions

The return on investment can come from improved efficiency, helping growers get the most out of a crop under variable growing conditions

An on-farm weather station doesn’t make the crop grow better, but farmers and agrologists using the technology say real-time information about precipitation, wind, temperature and soil moisture reserves can help guide decisions about if or when to apply crop inputs — and provide a good indication of what yield they might expect. Field scouting is […] Read more





Photo: File

Prairie forecast: Widespread frost then turning warmer

Forecast issued Oct. 2, covering Oct. 2 to 9, 2024

A large, deep area of low pressure is spinning over eastern Hudson Bay. Weak high pressure stretches across the northern part of the U.S. and into the southern Prairies. The strong counterclockwise rotation around the Hudson Bay low is pushing plenty of cool air southwards across the Prairies. Most regions have a good chance of frost early in this forecast period.

File photo of autumn colours around Lake Diefenbaker in Saskatchewan Landing Provincial Park. (Nancy Anderson/iStock/Getty Images)

Prairie forecast: Cooler, but still warmer than average

Forecast issued Sept. 25, covering Sept. 25 to Oct. 2, 2024

Despite a fairly unsettled pattern over the last forecast period, the weather models did a pretty good job of the forecast. For this forecast period, things should settle down a bit with a ridge of high pressure starting off our forecast. That doesn't mean that we won’t see any areas of low pressure, but unsurprisingly, the weather pattern is slowly shifting towards more of a fall pattern. That means quicker moving systems.


(Photo courtesy Canada Beef Inc.)

Prairie forecast: Cooler and wetter in the west, dry and warm in the east

Forecast issued Sept. 11, covering Sept. 11 to 18, 2024

Our weather pattern looks to be on the brink of a shift as a trough of low pressure begins to develop along the West  Coast. For those of you in Alberta, this will mean cooler and wetter conditions. In Manitoba, it looks like summer will continue for at least one more week. If you are in Saskatchewan, well, you will be stuck in the middle of these two features.

Hail in a yard west of Somerset, Manitoba, June 12, 2024.  Photo: Alexis Stockford/File

Hail, strong winds damage Prairie crops

A series of storms left a path of destruction in all three Prairie provinces from Aug. 19 to 25. More than one million acres were either damaged or destroyed by the storms bringing hail and strong winds, leading to more than 2,800 claims of crop damage, according to the Canadian Crop Hail Association (CCHA). “This […] Read more


Photo: Thinkstock

Prairie forecast: Warm but unsettled weather

Forecast issued Aug. 21, covering Aug. 21 to 28, 2024

Last week's forecast got off to a rough start. The area of low pressure that pushed through the eastern Prairies ended up as a large upper level low. Because those are slow to move out, they can affect systems trying to move east by backing them up or forcing them to take a different path. So, while the overall pressure pattern across the Prairies was still slack as forecasted, the details got all messed up.

(Photo courtesy Canada Beef Inc.)

Prairie forecast: Cooler weather coming, but little precipitation

Forecast issued July 31, covering July 31 to August 7, 2024

It's looking like we'll soon see an end to the hot conditions of the last few weeks as upper ridging collapses and the upper flow across the Prairies moves to a straight west-to-east flow. Under this pattern, we should see textbook summer conditions. The only downside is there aren't many chances of precipitation.