Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada

First Fall Frost (-2 °C) is defined as the average day of the second half of the year with the first occurrence of the minimum temperature of a climate day which is at or below -2 °C. These values are calculated across Canada in 10x10 km cells.

Monthly 30-year Average Maximum Temperature represents the average monthly maximum temperature calculated for a given location averaged across a 30 year period (1961-1991, 1971-2000, 1981-2010, 1991-2020). These values are calculated across Canada in 10x10 km cells.

Frost Day Count (0 °C) is defined as the number of days in a calendar month where the minimum daily temperature for the climate day was at or below 0 °C. These values are calculated across Canada in 10x10 km cells.

Growing Degree Days (GDDs) are used to estimate the growth and development of plants and insects during the growing season. Insect and plant development are very dependent on temperature and the daily accumulation of heat. The amount of heat required to move a plant or pest to the next...

Frost Day Count (-2 °C) is defined as the count of the number of days in a calendar month where the minimum daily temperature for the climate day was at or below -2 °C. These values are calculated across Canada in 10x10 km cells.

In 2010 the Earth Observation Team of the Science and Technology Branch (STB) at Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) continued the process of generating annual crop inventory digital maps using satellite imagery. Focusing on the Prairie Provinces, a Decision Tree (DT) based methodology was...

In 2011, the Earth Observation Team of the Science and Technology Branch (STB) at Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) expanded the process of generating annual crop inventory digital maps using satellite imagery to include British Columbia, Ontario, Quebec, and the Maritime provinces, in...

In 2013, the Earth Observation Team of the Science and Technology Branch (STB) at Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) repeated the process of generating annual crop inventory digital maps using satellite imagery to for all of Canada, in support of a national crop inventory. A Decision Tree...

In 2012, the Earth Observation Team of the Science and Technology Branch (STB) at Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) repeated the process of generating annual crop inventory digital maps using satellite imagery to for all of Canada (except Newfoundland), in support of a national crop...

The term "Palmer Drought Index" has been used collectively to represent multiple indices. This index is simply a water balance model which analyzes precipitation and temperature, and used as a tool to measure meteorological and hydrological drought across space and time. All versions of the...

Crop Heat Units (CHU) are calculated on a daily basis, using the maximum and minimum temperatures in order to account for a crop’s negative response to higher temperatures. The formula used to calculate the CHU value for a day is: (1.8 × (Minimum Temperature − 4.4) + 3.33 × (Maximum...

Accumulated Precipitation represents the amount of total precipitation in mm (solid and/or liquid) which has been recorded over a given period of time. Products are produced for the following timeframes: Agricultural Year, Growing Season, Winter Season, as well as rolling products for 7, 14,...

Growing degree days (GDDs) are used to estimate the growth and development of plants and insects during the growing season. Growing Degree Day are computed by subtracting a base value temperature from the mean daily temperature and are assigned a value of zero if negative. Base temperatures are a...

Mean Temperature Difference From Normal values are computed by subtracting the normal monthly average temperature from the average monthly temperature of the month. The average monthly temperature is computed by obtaining the mean value of average daily temperatures for a month. If the month was...

The “Terrestrial Ecodistricts of Canada” dataset provides representations of ecodistricts. An ecodistrict is a subdivision of an ecoregion and is characterized by distinctive assemblages of relief, landforms, geology, soil, vegetation, water bodies and fauna. For example, the Jeddore Lake...

The “Terrestrial Ecozones of Canada” dataset provides representations of ecozones. An ecozone is the top level of the four levels of ecosystems that the National Ecological Framework for Canada defines. The framework divides Canada into 15 terrestrial ecozones that define its ecological mosaic...

The Versatile Soil Moisture Budget (VSMB) is a soil water budget model that is continuous and deterministic in nature and was developed by AAFC. It is based on the premise that the water available for plant growth is gained by precipitation or irrigation, and lost through evapotranspiration and...

The National Ecological Framework for Canada provides a consistent, national spatial framework that allows various ecosystems to be described, monitored and reported on. It provides standard ecological units that allow different jurisdictions and disciplines to use common communication and...

Soil Landscapes of Canada (SLC) derived from V3.1 and V2.2 – Cartographic 1M will provide a general overview of soil landscapes in Canada at a scale of 1: 1 Million.

The “Terrestrial Ecoprovinces of Canada” dataset provides representations of ecoprovinces. An ecoprovince is a subdivision of an ecozone and is characterized by major assemblages of structural or surface forms, faunal realms, and vegetation, hydrology, soil, and macro climate. For example, the...