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Acreage guides for towns in this county: Brooks

Location of County of Newell in Alberta
County of Newell within Alberta

Farming in County of Newell, Alberta: Water, Wells and Frost-Free Days

If you run a working farm in County of Newell, four things set your season: how much water you can count on, how long the frost-free window is, which fields are wet or regulated, and what it costs to fix them. County figures are a starting point for a farm plan. They are not a parcel survey.

Irrigated forage, corn, potatoes, and seed crops, plus some of Canada's largest feedlots and a major beef plant at Brooks. Water allocation is the asset.

Well depth and water table for farm operators

Nearby well records suggest completed wells around 18 m deep in County of Newell, with static water levels often in the 4–12 m range. The predominant aquifer on file is Foremost and Oldman Formation sandstone with buried-channel sands. These figures come from a Land Intelligence report run on a representative quarter in the county (SE 13-19-14-W4; 100 provincial well records within 5 km), not from your parcel.

Newell is the heart of the Eastern Irrigation District, and canal water shapes everything. Domestic wells into Belly River Group sandstones are modest in depth but chemistry varies; many rural residents use EID pipelines rather than wells.

For livestock, plan for peak summer demand and for winter freeze-up. For irrigation, a well rarely replaces a licensed surface source, and diverting water for irrigation generally needs a Water Act licence. Only a pump test tells you yield, and a county average does not.

Frost-free days and hardiness zone

County of Newell is generally treated as hardiness zone 3b, with a frost-free window on the order of 120 days. The zone is read from the Natural Resources Canada plant hardiness map (4th edition, 1991–2020 normals) at a representative quarter; frost dates are a regional table keyed by zone, not a logger on your fence.

Zone 4a with around 125 frost-free days and high heat units under irrigation. Dryland quarters outside the district face hard drought limits.

Match variety maturity to the shorter, colder number, not the longer one. After an early harvest, a cover crop needs seed in the ground fast, and a 4R nitrogen plan helps you time inputs to the season you actually get. More on the zone: hardiness zone in County of Newell.

Wetlands, sloughs, and flood limits on the field

Wetland density in County of Newell is best described as low. Notable mapped or commonly discussed flood-hazard areas include Bow River valley, Red Deer River at Dinosaur Provincial Park, Eastern Irrigation District reservoirs.

Few natural wetlands, but irrigation reservoirs and return-flow wetlands are regulated and support wildlife. The Bow and Red Deer river valleys carry flood fringe limits.

Alberta regulates changes to wetlands and watercourses. Draining, filling, or ditching a wet area can require approval under the Water Act, even when it looks like a low spot in a field. Read the Alberta wetland policy guide before you order a ditcher, and price field drainage only after you know what is allowed.

Work packages farm operators ask about

Check grant fit before you spend

Alberta's producer programs run through Sustainable CAP, with streams for water, landscapes, efficiency, and value-added work. The federal On-Farm Climate Action Fund has supported nitrogen management, cover crops, and rotational grazing. Rates, caps, and intake change, so use the grant eligibility quiz to see what may apply, then confirm with the program administrator.

Sampled data for County of Newell

From a Land Intelligence report run on a representative quarter in Township 19, Range 14, W4. These are measured or record-based values for that location, shown to put the county figures above in context. They are not your parcel.

Median completed depth21.1 m100 records within 5 km of the sample
Middle half of wells12.6–36.0 mshallowest 6.1 m · deepest 340.5 m
Median static level6.1 mbelow ground, where recorded
Annual mean6.1 °Clow -27.5 °C · high 36.3 °C in the sampled year
Days with frost166in the sampled year
Frost windowMay 15 – Sep 18regional table for zone 3b
Growing degree days1984base 5 °C
Fixed south array yield1406 kWh/kWp/yrlatitude tilt, rough feasibility only
Annual insolation1803.1 kWh/m²global, horizontal
Farmland value context$9,394/acretransfer average, FCC-trend adjusted; not an appraisal
Nearby well records in County of Newell: completed depth (down) versus distance from the sample point0 m90 m180 m270 m360 m0.0 km0.8 km1.5 km2.2 km3.0 kmmedian 21.1 m0.4 km away: completed 25.7 m, static level 13.7 m0.4 km away: completed 21.1 m, static level 9.1 m0.4 km away: completed 80.3 m0.4 km away: completed 17.8 m, static level 5.8 m0.5 km away: completed 35.5 m, static level 12.5 m0.7 km away: completed 30.9 m0.9 km away: completed 340.5 m1.1 km away: completed 13.5 m, static level 5.5 m1.1 km away: completed 12.6 m, static level 2.4 m1.2 km away: completed 37.6 m, static level 25.6 m1.2 km away: completed 19.6 m, static level 7.6 m1.2 km away: completed 21.1 m, static level 9.1 m1.2 km away: completed 18.3 m1.2 km away: completed 24.2 m, static level 12.2 m1.4 km away: completed 18.1 m, static level 6.1 m1.6 km away: completed 203.0 m1.7 km away: completed 24.2 m, static level 12.2 m1.8 km away: completed 172.8 m1.9 km away: completed 7.6 m1.9 km away: completed 11.1 m, static level 3.1 m1.9 km away: completed 6.1 m1.9 km away: completed 9.2 m, static level 1.2 m1.9 km away: completed 8.9 m, static level 0.9 m2.1 km away: completed 13.8 m, static level 1.8 m2.1 km away: completed 33.9 m, static level 25.9 m2.3 km away: completed 9.1 m2.3 km away: completed 12.3 m, static level 4.3 m2.3 km away: completed 12.2 m2.3 km away: completed 38.1 m2.4 km away: completed 18.3 m2.4 km away: completed 14.1 m, static level 6.1 m2.5 km away: completed 35.5 m, static level 4.6 m2.6 km away: completed 91.4 m2.7 km away: completed 28.0 m2.7 km away: completed 23.3 m, static level 8.5 m2.7 km away: completed 39.6 m2.8 km away: completed 12.0 m, static level 4.0 m3.0 km away: completed 58.3 m, static level 1.2 m3.0 km away: completed 47.6 m, static level 39.6 m3.0 km away: completed 12.6 m, static level 4.6 m
Each dot is one provincial well record near the sampled quarter: distance across, completed depth down (deeper is lower). Hover a dot for its values. The dashed line is the median. Records are shown by distance only; no locations are published.
Monthly average high and low temperature, County of Newell-15300 °CJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecJan: average high -1.2 °C, average low -10.6 °CJan: average high -1.2 °C, average low -10.6 °CFeb: average high 1.4 °C, average low -9.3 °CFeb: average high 1.4 °C, average low -9.3 °CMar: average high 5.2 °C, average low -6.4 °CMar: average high 5.2 °C, average low -6.4 °CApr: average high 9.9 °C, average low -1.9 °CApr: average high 9.9 °C, average low -1.9 °CMay: average high 20.3 °C, average low 7.1 °CMay: average high 20.3 °C, average low 7.1 °CJun: average high 19.1 °C, average low 9.9 °CJun: average high 19.1 °C, average low 9.9 °CJul: average high 27.8 °C, average low 14.3 °CJul: average high 27.8 °C, average low 14.3 °CAug: average high 25.1 °C, average low 12.4 °CAug: average high 25.1 °C, average low 12.4 °CSep: average high 19.8 °C, average low 8.3 °CSep: average high 19.8 °C, average low 8.3 °COct: average high 13.9 °C, average low 2.5 °COct: average high 13.9 °C, average low 2.5 °CNov: average high 4.3 °C, average low -4.7 °CNov: average high 4.3 °C, average low -4.7 °CDec: average high -3.2 °C, average low -14.5 °CDec: average high -3.2 °C, average low -14.5 °C27.8 °C-14.5 °CAverage daily highAverage daily low
Open-Meteo daily archive (ERA5 reanalysis), 2025-10-08 to 2026-10-08: one recent year at the sample point, not a 30-year normal. Use it for the shape of the year, not for a design value.
Monthly horizontal irradiance, County of Newell (kWh/m²/day)Jan: 1.24 kWh/m²/dayJFeb: 2.22 kWh/m²/dayFMar: 3.61 kWh/m²/dayMApr: 4.9 kWh/m²/dayAMay: 5.81 kWh/m²/dayMJun: 6.33 kWh/m²/dayJ6.33Jul: 6.59 kWh/m²/dayJAug: 5.56 kWh/m²/dayASep: 3.84 kWh/m²/daySOct: 2.46 kWh/m²/dayONov: 1.32 kWh/m²/dayNDec: 0.96 kWh/m²/dayD0.96
Horizontal irradiance by month from the report pipeline's insolation tables at the sample point. June and December are labelled; the ratio between them sizes an off-grid battery bank.

Growing zones near County of Newell: Brooks (zone 3b) · Alberta growing zones map

Neighbouring counties: Wheatland County (86 km) · MD of Taber (91 km) · Vulcan County (95 km) · Special Areas (2, 3 and 4) (119 km) · Compare County of Newell with another county

Sampled from the live report pipeline at a representative quarter in Township 19, Range 14, W4 on 2026-10-08: well depth, hardiness zone, solar irradiance (100 well records within 5 km). Text reviewed 2026-10-08. Methodology.

Common questions

How deep are farm wells in County of Newell?

Nearby records point to roughly 18 m as a planning figure. Your parcel can differ a lot, so a pump test matters more than the county average.

How long is the growing season in County of Newell?

Plan around about 120 frost-free days, then check your own field for frost pockets and shorter windows.

Do I need approval to drain a wet field in County of Newell?

Often, when a wetland or watercourse is involved. Confirm with Alberta Environment and Protected Areas before you dig.

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