Spring life: Wyomingites celebrate new life, spring work statewide

Warm days, sunshine and short-lived snow all mark spring for the state of Wyoming, and ranchers across the region have spent time starting their spring work.

The Mountain Regional Field Office of the National Agricultural Statistics Service noted that spring crops are going into the ground, marking the start of the farming season. Their April 9 Crop Progress and Condition report showed that planting is slightly behind a year ago, while calving and lambing are closer to level with last year.

Barley was 21 percent planted and one percent emerged, while oats were 18 percent planted. Only five percent of spring wheat was planted for the year. Overall, planting progress is behind a year ago and the five-year average.

In the livestock industry 56 percent of cows have calved and 35 percent of ewes had lambed. Just over 59 percent of sheep in the state had been shorn.

As our readers have been hard at work, they’ve also found the time to snap some photos of the activity on their ranches. Turn to pages 8-9 to see more photos from around the state.