Thousands of farmers across Western Canada are using a management tool
that can help improve yields through better timing of their spray
operations.
Growth Stage, which has its prairie headquarters in Calgary, has
developed the Crop Management System, or CMS.
It can predict crop development stages on a daily basis through what
Growth Stage calls predictive crop modelling.
Predictions are made using local weather data and a grower’s field
information.
The weather data includes things such as temperature, precipitation
Read Also
Agriculture ministers agree to AgriStability changes
federal government proposed several months ago to increase the compensation rate from 80 to 90 per cent and double the maximum payment from $3 million to $6 million
and solar radiation. Field information includes soil type and moisture,
tillage type, planting date, crop and residue amount.
Growth Stage business development manager Mike Giles said many western
Canadian farmers are working more land spread over larger geographic
areas. With multiple planting dates and varied weather patterns, it can
be a challenge for them to keep on top of crop development and field
scouting.
Giles said his company’s system can help farmers know when to start
scouting their crops to ensure the most timely pesticide application.
“This is a tool they can use to reinforce the decisions they’re making.”
He said about 6,000 western Canadian farmers and almost 1,000 farm
input retailers are using CMS.
“These reports provide information on critical local crop and weed
stages, to ensure growers and custom applicators do not miss optimum
applications windows,” Giles said.
“All our models are built for local conditions, cropping practices and
agronomy.”
Mark Morse, a farmer and custom applicator at Starbuck, Man., plans to
use CMS in his wheat and canola this year.
He said the predictions are accurate, but expects it will take a couple
more years to pin down how to best use them in his own operation.
However, he said he can already see where it can help producers keep
abreast of crop development, especially if they are up against narrow
spraying windows.
“It’s going to give us a red flag and tell us, ‘this is what stage your
crop is going to be in and you’d better be out there looking at it.’ “
Morse said by compiling reports over the year, CMS will also allow him
to look back on weather conditions and crop management decisions and
help him pinpoint which decisions gave the best results.
“Like anything, there’s a steep learning curve in the first year. It
will take some time to pin down where to rely on it and where to use
it.”
There are a number of ways growers can subscribe to the service,
including what Growth Stage calls its CMS Premier subscription, which
costs $1,500 per year for multiple crops – wheat, barley, corn,
soybean, field peas and canola.
CMS Premier allows subscribers to put in field locations, crop type and
planting date, and have the technology monitor and predict crop and
weed growth development during the growing season.
Producers receive the information on the internet. E-mail alerts warn
users if an important stage is approaching or if the weather will
affect cropping decisions, such as spraying.
Some crop protection manufacturers also supply the service to growers
who use their products.
For information, contact www.
growthstage.com or call 888-256-9557.
