Weather delays lentil seeding, may slow development

(Resource News International) — Excessively wet conditions in Saskatchewan have delayed seeding of numerous crops and caused concern about the extent of moisture damage to recently planted fields, including lentils.

“I think there was quite a bit of area that had been intended to be seeded to lentils, that just did not get into the ground because of the wet conditions,” said Colin Young, manager of R. Young Seeds at Mortlach in southern Saskatchewan.

Excess moisture also probably caused some drowning out of lentil fields, he said.

However, he also felt lentil crops that were planted early were doing fairly well in a number of regions. “My impression is that there are lentils which are experiencing some good growing conditions and there are areas in which the crop is having problems.”

Most individuals are nervous about the potential for problems down the line, as opposed to the current conditions and their impact, he said.

“The current issue is seeding, particularly in the corridor including Regina down to Estevan,” Young said, noting producers are just not able to seed lentils because of the wet conditions.

The issue comes down to the area drying out enough to allow heavy machinery on the fields before seeding deadlines pass, he said.

Late development

Another key issue for lentils will be the late development, which may leave the crop vulnerable to summer heat.

“If lentils flower during any kind of blistering heat, the flower will be burnt off and there will be no podding,” he said.

Another potential problem is that the root system of the lentil plant will not develop adequately, Young said, adding that the late-planted lentil fields also become vulnerable to an early frost in the fall.

“The key right now is that the late planting and slow development opens up the probability of problems down the road,” he said.

However, he also noted that while there have been many doomsday predictions about lentil production, the crop is still far from being made and being in the bin.

Lentil area was forecast by Statistics Canada back in April at around 2.74 million acres, which compares with the 2009 level of 2.355 million.

Private industry estimates had lentils coming in at the 3.25 million- to 3.5 million-acre range, but with the moisture situation, the actual seeded area will likely be below three million, Young said.

The world price, he noted, has not yet reacted to the growing issues in Western Canada, but at some point there will need to be some sort of reaction.

Based on Prairie Ag Hotwire data, bids for No. 1 Laird lentils delivered to the elevator currently range from 28 to 30 cents a pound, No. 1 Estons 22.5-23 cents and for No. 1 crimsons, 21-22 cents. 

New-crop bids for No. 1 Lairds were in the 20-20.5 cents per pound range, No. 1 Estons 12.5-13.5 cents and No. 1 crimsons, 20.5-21 cents.