Robin Booker

Robin Booker

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Robin Booker is the Editor for The Western Producer. He has an honours degree in sociology from the University of Alberta, a journalism degree from the University of Regina, and a farming background that helps him relate to the issues farmers face.

Stories by Robin Booker

Close-up of a large kochia plant.
Crop Management

Group 14-resistant kochia found in central Sask.

Producers began using Group 14 herbicides once weeds started to appear in fields that were resistant to glyphosate

Charles Geddes, a research scientist in weed ecology at Agriculture Canada’s research centre in Lethbridge, said growers dealing with kochia should keep a lookout for this type of resistance.
Mapping weed patches during the growing season can be a useful tool to help growers create application zones for herbicides, including residuals, that can be applied the following year. Kochia is a good candidate for weed mapping because it often grows in large patches. | Farming Smarter photo
Crop Management

Map weed clusters to manage resistance

Identifying and quickly addressing weed patches has never been more important as herbicide-resistant weeds increasingly menace farmers across the country. Accurate maps of weed locations are a good first step to squash them before they can spread. There are both established and emerging technologies that can produce precise weed maps. Some weed maps require innovative […] Read more
The fixed-wing spray drone by Precision AI uses artificial intelligence and an advanced camera and application system to target individual weeds within crop canopies. The drone has a seven-metre wingspan and was designed to apply herbicides while travelling 70 km-h at a height of eight to 10 feet. | Precision AI photo
Crop Management

Drone AI takes on new field tasks

Artificial intelligence developed for spray drone modified to monitor fields for weeds, disease or even insect infestations

Regina-based Precision AI is having a great year. Last summer, during the Ag In Motion outdoor farm show held near Saskatoon, the company launched its autonomous, fixed-wing drone that uses artificial intelligence to identify and treat individual weeds within a broad-acre-crop canopy. In March, it won numerous international awards for the drone, including the Cooperative […] Read more
Corteva’s new in-crop herbicide for wheat and barley, OnDeck, can be applied as early as the one-leaf stage. Most of Corteva’s cereal herbicides are applied from three-leaf to flag-leaf. | Corteva photo
Crop Management

Herbicide hard on kochia, easy on the crop rotations

Dual-modal herbicide for wheat and barley allows for planting of peas or lentils in the following year

Growers in the dark brown and brown soil zone have a new herbicide option designed to control kochia in cereals. Corteva Agriscience’s OnDeck has a Group 6 (bromoxynil) and a Group 27 (tolpyralate), an active ingredient that is new to the western Canadian cereal market. Jason Smith, Corteva’s western portfolio marketing manager for cereal herbicides, […] Read more
Viatude is a new fungicide offered by Corteva that combines two modes of action, onmira and prothioconazole, that are used in other fungicides, but this is the first time they are offered in the same product. On the left is a canola stand that was treated with Viatude, while the canola in the right image was untreated. | Photos supplied by Corteva
Crop Management

Dual-modal fungicide takes on sclerotinia

Established fungicides combine to boost canola yield, prevent resistance from developing in the oilseed crop

Canola and soybean growers have another option for the control of sclerotinia and white mould with the launch of Viatude for the 2023 growing season. Viatude is a dual-modal product that combines a Group 3 and a Group 11. Kirsten Ratzlaff, portfolio marketing manager for Corteva Agriscience, said Corteva has been testing Viatude for years, […] Read more
The latest product in Soilgenic Technologies’ lineup is Visio-N Supra, which contains 40 percent N-(n-Butyl) thiophosphoric triamide (NBPT). | Soilgenic Technologies photo
Crop Management

Urease inhibitor easy to handle

A Calgary company that produces a line of fertilizer-efficiency additives has a new concentrated urease inhibitor technology that reduces costs of advanced efficiency-fertilizer products. The latest product in Soilgenic Technologies’ lineup is Visio-N Supra, which contains 40 percent N-(n-Butyl)thiophosphoric triamide (NBPT). Jeff Ivan, president and chief executive officer of Soilgenic Technologies, said NBPT has previously […] Read more
The SKSIS Mapper is a predictive soil mapping service capable of creating field maps and multiple soil properties, including organic carbon, soil organic matter, profile classifications, topsoil thickness and soil texture. This soil classification map, for the University of Saskatchewan site south of Saskatoon, was built in collaboration with Croptimistic Technology.  |  Photo supplied by Jeremy Kiss
Crop Management

Predictive maps help make ag decisions

Service produces maps of soil types and properties that agrologists, farmers can use to be more precise

A new predictive soil-mapping service will be available in Saskatchewan this spring for farmers and agronomists who want to participate in the system’s beta testing. The service is available through the Saskatchewan Soil Information System (SKSIS), which was developed by a research team in the University of Saskatchewan’s soil science department. The SKSIS is a […] Read more
Cameron Holbrook, vice-president of Digital Transformation at Nutrien Ag Solutions, said this advanced connectivity between the two platforms will simplify logistics, and enable variable rate agronomic recommendations to be more easily sent to Deere equipment. | Screencap via deere.com
Crop Management

Firms deepen variable rate link as information sharing increases

Variable rate prescriptions from Nutrien Ag Solutions’ Digital Hub can now be automatically loaded into John Deere’s Operations Center. Cameron Holbrook, vice-president of Digital Transformation at Nutrien Ag Solutions, said this advanced connectivity between the two platforms will simplify logistics, and enable variable rate agronomic recommendations to be more easily sent to Deere equipment. The […] Read more
Researchers at the University of Saskatchewan used a inter-row sprayer with shielded spray nozzles to apply non-selective herbicides, Glufosinate and Clethodim, between the rows in an oat crop to control wild oat. | Photo supplied by Brianna Senetza
Crop Management

Inter-row spraying, weed wicking wild oats

Inter-row spraying and weed wicking can help control wild oats in cultivated oat fields, with the best results arising from using the two practices on the same crop. Brianna Senetza, a master’s student at the University of Saskatchewan, said wild oats is a tricky and costly weed to manage, especially in cultivated oats. “From an […] Read more
Barley must be below 30 percent moisture before a pre-harvest application of glyphosate is applied. The moisture content of barley is typically assessed by a thumbnail test, where if a fingernail depression stays in the seed, it is not mature enough to be sprayed. A recent study found a wide variability of moisture content in malt barley seed that passed the thumbnail test, which has researchers questioning the test’s reliability. | File photo
Crop Management

Is pre-harvest glyphosate worth it?

New study determines malting barley can exceed the maximum residue limit even when application followed the label

A new study found the maximum residue limit for glyphosate in malt barley was exceeded, even though it was applied according to label requirements. “When the application was done at the recommended time and rate, so 900 grams ae (acid equivalent) per hectare at the hard dough stage, we had occurrences with residue above the […] Read more

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