Farmers in some parts of Saskatchewan say they are ready to write off the current growing season, as continued dry weather puts crop development further and further behind.

On Friday, the provincial agriculture ministry reported that topsoil moisture had grown worse in the last seven days. The ministry's weekly crop report, which is current to June 29, noted that west-central areas of the province were "still in severe need of moisture."

"I can't count the number of people who in this area say they have never seen it this dry," Denis Dunn, a farm equipment dealer from Kindersley, told CBC News on Thursday.

Dunn said that some farmers have considered cancelling orders for fall combining equipment.

The government report noted that the majority of crops were behind normal development. Even if rains come, the delay in growth could become a problem at harvest time if combining is not done before frost arrives.

On average, 58 per cent of fall-seeded fields were behind normal development and 68 to 80 per cent of spring-seeded varieties were lagging, according to the crop report.