A dry spell is parching Canadian farmland when growers most need moisture to plant the wheat and canola crops that help feed the world.

Parts of the Canadian Prairies have experienced the second-driest start to a year in 45 years, said David Streit, senior meteorologist at Commodity Weather Group. Swaths of key spring wheat regions including Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba have received less than 60 per cent of average precipitation since Sept. 1, according to Canada’s agriculture ministry.

 “It becomes a bit of an art to try and get those seeds at the right depth into the soil because you need to be seeding into moisture to get them to germinate,” said Bill Prybylski, a farmer and vice president at Agricultural Producers Association of Saskatchewan. “If there isn’t good moisture, those tiny plants are quite susceptible to adverse conditions.”

Canada is the world’s top canola grower and a major wheat exporter. Drought fears in Canada come amid continued uncertainty about wheat exports from the Black Sea region and as dry conditions in parts of the U.S. threaten to cut output.