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Asparagus growers hurt by weather extremes Seattle Times | June 29, 2006 Extreme weather conditions, a marketplace collision with a late California crop, and an oversupply of their own fresh crop made this a tough season for Washington asparagus growers. Growers saw high prices early in the season in late April at $40 per 28-pound box. But cool weather slowed how much growers could harvest to meet demand. The weather then took a drastic turn last month when the Yakima Valley experienced unseasonably hot temperatures in the 90s, increasing the supply. They went from having too little supply to meet demand to having too much. Sask. wants faster action on farm-disaster program The Leader-Post | Angela Hall | June 28, 2006 A new program to assist farmers when disasters strike is in the works. While details are scarce, a "catastrophic disaster" assistance program would deliver cash faster than already existing programs. Officials are expected to provide some details this fall on what the program might look like. They will also review production insurance -- commonly called crop insurance -- and make recommendations on expanding it to include livestock and other commodities not well covered by the current program. UN Gives Emergency Food Aid to Drought-Hit Nepal Planet Ark | June 22, 2006 The United Nations World Food Programme has started distributing emergency food to more than 225,000 people in central and western Nepal hit by the worst drought in decades. "Food insecurity is already a fact of life in these districts, and we are very concerned that effects of the drought will exacerbate what is already a precarious situation," Richard Ragan, country director, said in a statement. Many of Nepal's villages are located in remote mountains and foodgrains would have to be flown in. Scientists to employ Arctic ice and polar bears to protect diversity of world's crops Global Crop Diversity Trust | June 19, 2006 Heads of State from five Nordic countries and the Global Crop Diversity Trust laid the cornerstone today for a "fail-safe" seed vault to be carved into an Arctic mountain. The vault will ensure the long-term survival of the world's vital food crops. This facility will provide a practical means to reestablish crops obliterated by major disasters. The "doomsday vault" or Svalbard International Seed Vault (SISV) will have a capacity of three million seed samples. It will ultimately house replicates of every known crop variety, as well as have ample capacity to accommodate new variation as it arises naturally. Climate change adds to the challenges facing the world's farmers--and to their reliance on crop genetic diversity. Even now, plant breeders are trying to develop more drought-resistant varieties of several of these crops. Temperate-region crops are also at risk. Expected crop yields higher than average due to warm Prairie weather Canadian Press | June 16, 2006 Good weather is proving to be a blessing for western grain farmers this year. The Canadian Wheat Board is projecting a wheat and durum crop of 23.6 million tonnes - almost three million tonnes higher than the five-year average. Barley production is forecast at 10.6 million tonnes - just slightly above the average. A warm and relatively dry spring allowed farmers to begin planting earlier than normal this year in most areas. The notable exception to the positive forecast is northeastern Saskatchewan, where excessive moisture has taken more than 400,000 hectares out of production this year. Canadian producers may also benefit from a little less competition on the world market. Wheat production in other countries is expected to drop from last year because of drought in the U.S. southern plains region and cold weather in Ukraine and southern Russia. Mother Nature gives farmers a break Manitoba Co-operator | Bonnie Baltessen | June 2, 2006 Manitoba farmers were able to take advantage of early snowmelt and get on to fields early. The north Interlake, such as Fisher Branch and Ashern, have pockets of excess moisture and areas straight west have also had struggles seeding. Having said that, for the most part, for those areas to be finished seeding in the first week of June is not really far off normal. Monitoring is ongoing and producers are advised to be diligent. Saskatchewan is also experiencing some improved conditions for crop growth. But in Saskatchewan’s northeastern Porcupine Plain area, the story is very different. Excess moisture this spring on top of excess moisture last fall created a difficult situation. Some producers have already received flood insurance. Drought conditions hurting Nebraska's wheat crop Canadian Press | Anna Jo Bratton | June 2, 2006 A spate of severe thunderstorms last week brought hurricane-force winds, but missed the driest part of the state - North Platte, Imperial and Broken Bow barely got wet. The dry spell has been tough on wheat crops, leaving winter wheat in southwestern Nebraska and the Panhandle in jeopardy. The problem has been a long time building. There has been little rain and a lot of hot weather in April and May, and June looks to be hot as well. The heat especially needs to be offset by additional rain. Statewide, the drought picture isn't as grim as it once was. In the meantime, farmers and ranchers are watching forecasts closely. Rice research in next 10 years to focus on global warming, drought Yahoo News | June 1, 2006 Overcoming climate change and drought will be the main focus of efforts to boost rice yields in the next 10 years, the International Rice Research Institute said. The Philippines-based IRRI is "committed to very forward looking projects that, if successful, will revolutionize agriculture for future generations." IRRI is progressing in developing rice lines that harbor (nitrogen)-fixing bacteria that will greatly reduce the plant's need for applied nitrogen fertilizer. It will also work to develop drought-tolerant rice for rainfed and water-limited irrigated environments. Dust Bowl days return? Wheat crop endangered, rain urgently needed Journal-Advocate | Jennifer Klein | June 1, 2006 With a chance of the county getting enough urgently needed rain now slim, experts warn the local wheat crop is in danger. For wheat farmers, a lack of moisture means a threat to their livelihood. 3 to 4 inches of rain is needed over the next two weeks to ensure the week crop's survival. Some locals think it's drier than the 1930s, when drought caused a large number of dust storms in the central United States and Canada known as the Dust Bowl. Some fields where farmers did not use a conventional farming method of preparing the soil by digging it up known as tillage look good right now. Those fields were able to capture and hold between 40 to 50 percent of the extra moisture. Irrigated wheat also looks good and those crops had no disease or insect problems this year. But the majority of area farmers use conventional tillage. Those fields are burning up. |
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