Agricultural moisture situation update April 15, 2021

SYNOPSIS

Since the beginning of April the weather has been quite variable, starting out the month warmer than normal, followed by a general cool down and in recent days has turn warm again. Over all conditions have been generally dry, but some agricultural areas have received modest amounts of moisture following a very dry spell this winter.

Forecast from AF’s Fire Weather Office

Over the next few days, and into Saturday April 17, 2021, most areas should experience warmer than normal temperatures accompanied by calm winds. This will be abruptly followed by a significant cool down late on Saturday and into Sunday as a cold front pushes through the province from the north. This system is expected to bring some moisture to many of Alberta’s of agricultural areas (5 to 10 mm is possible), but the majority of it will be focused on the foothills and higher elevations. Following the passage of this cold front, the temperatures early next week are expected moderate, but they are not expected to be above normal.

Precipitation accumulations over the past 14-days (Map 1)

Over the past 14 days precipitation has been highly variable through the agricultural areas, so much so that a verbal description would end up being tedious, to say the least (Map 1). The greatest accumulations (up to 10 mm) occurred throughout much of the Special Areas, parts of South Western Alberta, the North East Region and the Central Peace Region. In contrast many large and widely scattered areas received none.

Perspective (Map 2)

Historically, April is still a relatively dry month throughout most of the province (Map 2) and it’s not uncommon for many areas to receive very little rainfall during April. Towards the

latter half of May, summer weather patterns begin to dominate and mark the beginning of Alberta’s wet season. The dry fall and winter, along with an early retreat of winter snows, has left many pasture areas in need of moisture soon. Over the next few weeks, as the soils warm up, pastures are going to need some moisture to give them a good start for the coming growing season.

Map 1