JUNE 2017 • COUNTRY LIFE IN BC Rain’s a pain,
farmers say Cool, wet weather puts brakes on production across BC
by PETER MITHAM CHILLIWACK – Warm,
sunny weather has been like the proverbial cheque in the mail for many farmers this year, often promised but never arriving. The result could be a hit to farm incomes come fall. “We’ve had it with this. We want this to stop,” says Tom Baumann, principal of Chilliwack consulting firm Expert Agriculture Team Ltd. and an associate professor at the University of the Fraser Valley in Chilliwack. Rain and light hail since mid-April have made field conditions miserable and threatened berry blossoms. “We’re in the middle of
flower for blueberries, we’re in the middle of flowering for the strawberries, and we’re getting where there are raspberry flowers going to be open, too. So this is not good,” Baumann said in early May. “We are now losing flowers and we see some developing rot.”
Growers are doing their best to spray and protect plants but the steady rain is tough to absorb. Still, Baumann is grateful a
large freshet on the Fraser River seems unlikely, despite the snowpack feeding its flows holding well above normal. Meanwhile, localized flooding in the Shuswap, Okanagan and Nicola valleys have made it tough for farmers to work fields with everything from vegetables to grain. “We’ve never seen it this wet in the spring,” says Rick
Kantz, a Fort St. John grain farmer and president of the BC Grain Producers Association. Two feet of snow at the end of April sucker-punched growers out of the field until May 11, whereupon five centimetres of rain fell. “There’s almost no seeding,
maybe 5% seeding, done in the area,” Kantz says. “I don’t know that we’ll be in the fields in another week and a half.” Growers burned about 20%
of last year’s crop after snow froze harvest. With seeding deadlines of May 20 for canola, May 25 for wheat, and June 5 for everything else, Kantz doesn’t expect much of 2017. “We only have a certain
window and if we lose it on the front end, we don’t get it at the back end,” he says. “If we are lucky – extremely lucky – you might see maybe 20% to 25% crop seeded up here. Other than that, it’s going to be unseeded acres.” While the moisture should mean good times for hay producers in the Peace, their harvest will likely be in demand by growers in southern BC who’ve missed the usual timing for first cut.
Silver lining The cool weather is
promising a boon for tree fruit producers, however. There’s been some disease
pressure in orchards due to the high humidity but BC Tree Fruits Co-operative field services manager Hank Markgraf said cooler weather usually heralds a heavy crop because growers delay thinning. But this gives bees a
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Making the most of a bad situation: Demay Farms in Salmon Arm typically loses about 12 acres to flooding each spring, but 60 to 70 acres were under water this May, prompting family members to pull out the kayaks and paddle in the shadow of Mount Ida. JOANNA MAY PHOTO
chance to get more work done. “You get a much heavier set
than you think you’re going to get,” he says. “We’re already seeing that on the cherries. Apples are also looking good in the south Okanagan, and bloom is underway in the central Okanagan and should be on by early June. “We’ve got a big crop coming – the bloom is looking just fantastic,” Markgraf says. The season is about four
weeks later than last year, but only a week behind the 10- year average. It’s a similar situation at
Quail’s Gate Estate Winery in West Kelowna, where
winemaker Nikki Callaway said vineyards are a week behind but holding their own. The big issue many
horticultural producers mention is competition from weeds, which are flourishing with the extra moisture. Prolific greenery also boosts the wildfire risk in the Interior when it dies back. In berries and vegetables, the weeds are competition for nutrients. Alf Krause of Krause Berry
Farm in Langley said weed control has been more difficult this spring, especially because he can’t get into the fields to do as much as he would like.
On the other hand, the cool
weather has given plants a chance to recover from the harsh winter and difficult spring. Both have taken a toll on their root systems, which must gather strength to deliver nutrients to the leaves and maturing fruit. A fast, hot start to the season, like last year, could kill the plants. Nevertheless, Krause
expects to be picking his first strawberries by June 6. Baumann shares his optimism, despite ongoing bouts of rain. “We’re doing well,” he says.
“I’m surprised at how well we’re doing considering what we’ve been through in April (and) March.”
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