Crop ManagementInfluencing public policy | Experts need to explain findings in terms public can relate to
WINNIPEG — Soil scientists who really want to influence public policy need to tell meaningful stories about the importance of soil rather than generate specialized results for a handful of peers. Henry Janzen, a researcher with Agriculture Canada, says that doesn’t mean experiments and the resulting data are irrelevant, but scientists need to use numbers, […] Read more
Crop Management
Scientists urged to better engage public about soil
Officials look for additional herbicide options
Alfalfa fields | Trial results show Authority, a Group 14 herbicide, might help control kochia
ENCHANT, Alta. — The Group 14 herbicide Authority may be effective against kochia in seed alfalfa fields, according to early data from a southern Alberta plot trial. Though not registered for use in alfalfa, the chemical killed kochia and outperformed Edge and Velpa. The latter two also showed good results. The findings may lead researchers […] Read moreHot, dry weather in Alberta minimizes disease pressure in alfalfa seed crops
ENCHANT, Alta. — Good news for farmers is bad news for researchers interested in studying the pathogens behind blossom blight and stem rot in alfalfa seed crops. Syama Chatterton, a plant pathology researcher with Agriculture Canada, told the July 23 Alberta Alfalfa Seed Commission tour group that no signs of either disease have been found […] Read more
Glyphosate resistant kochia suspected in Manitoba
Growers and provincial agriculture specialists suspect that glyphosate resistant kochia has arrived in Manitoba. After applying glyphosate this year, several soybean growers found that the herbicide did not kill kochia plants in their fields. They alerted provincial employees, including Dennis Lange, a Manitoba Agriculture crop production adviser in Altona. Lange, who spoke at a field […] Read more
Manitoba hit one million acres of seeded soybeans this year
After much speculation, guesswork and prognostications, it appears that Manitoba farmers seeded more than one million acres of soybeans this year. Manitoba Agricultural Services Corp., the provincial crop insurer, is projecting 1.08 million acres of soybeans for the province in 2013. With 97 percent of the data reported as of late July, there were 1.048 […] Read more
Ontario grain farmers fight back in neonicotinoid ban debate
Grain Farmers of Ontario is now actively campaigning to preserve insecticide seed treatments after taking a collaborative approach for several months. The organization sent out postcards to its members in July asking farmers to contact their MP or MPP to stop a potential ban of neonicotinoids in Ontario. The campaign is a response to efforts […] Read more
Prairie crop report generally positive
Saskatchewan Warm weather in the third week of July helped crops advance, although rain and high humidity slowed haying progress and even decreased quality. Hay yields are slightly above the five-year average and are reported at 1.5 tons per acre for alfalfa and alfalfa-brome hay, 1.3 tons per acre for other tame hay, one ton […] Read more
Field tour gets lowdown on growing fababeans
ENCHANT, Alta. — Fababeans were the crop du jour at a July 16 field day that attracted 80 southern Alberta farmers. An estimated 15,000 to 16,000 acres have been planted to the crop in Alberta this year, the highest amount ever seeded in the province. “The attraction is it’s a high yielding crop in all […] Read more
Bigger crop, market threat weaken flax prices
China holds off on imports | Strong production, slow world demand puts damper on Canadian flax prices
Flax prices are slumping as the market transitions from old crop to new crop values. “We were paying a couple of weeks ago as high as $17 a bushel and now we’re down to $14 f.o.b. farm,” said Grant Fehr, flax-special crops manager with Keystone Grain Ltd. Strong global production prospects and lackluster demand are […] Read more
Video: Seed faster with small machine
Tempo turns it up | Small implements may trump bigger, hard to manoeuvre implements
A smaller planter means less capital investment, a cheaper tractor and a lot of acres per day when running at 10 m.p.h., says a Saskatchewan farmer. Blake Brownridge of Arcola said he became a believer in the European concept of small, high-speed implements last year when he seeded 300 acres with the 16-row Vaderstad Tempo […] Read more
