Mapping and note-taking are the stock and trade for agrologists and large farms, but rapid record keeping can be onerous
LANGNHAM, Sask. — Sending agronomic reports to customers used to be an onerous task for Kara Annand, who is an owner of Ag Grow Consulting of Nipawin, Sask. So, the company hired a developer to build a cloud-based app called AgScouter to help its agronomists efficiently take and send in field reports to customers. “It’s […] Read moreTag Archives Agronomy
Prairie soil after a fire
Risks
Some mainstream news outlets tend to sensationalize their coverage of prairie wildfires by emphasizing how many “acres of land were destroyed,” leaving Canadians with the impression that the land is gone. Grassland specialists such as Barry Adams counter those reports by explaining that fire cannot destroy land. “But it can destroy peoples lives,” said Adams, […] Read more
Ontario research aims to make canola profitable
Ontario growers now have a Canola Learning Centre to help them overcome some of the problems with growing profitable canola. Canola is the largest crop grown in Canada, overtaking wheat this year, but in Ontario acres have been decreasing. Canola acres have declined by about a third in the past five years to 40,000 acres. […] Read more
Use caution with pre-harvest applications
Saskatchewan’s provincial wheat commission is reminding farmers to follow label directions when applying desiccants or weed control products to standing crops this fall. It’s not a new message, says SaskWheat chair Bill Gehl, but it’s one that needs to be repeated to ensure producers are using the products correctly and not negatively affecting the quality […] Read more
Weevils threaten alfalfa crop
Prairie growers should be checking their alfalfa fields for alfalfa weevils as soon as possible, say forage experts in Manitoba and Saskatchewan. If weevil larvae numbers are high, the alfalfa crop should be cut immediately, weather permitting. If that’s not possible, growers should consider a pesticide application. “There are many alfalfa fields where if it’s […] Read more
Continuous canola not as profitable as farmers might think
LACOMBE, Alta. — A new Agriculture Canada study suggests tight canola rotations do not provide better returns than longer and more diverse rotations. “People say they have to grow continuous canola because they are getting the highest net returns,” Neil Harker, an Agriculture Canada research scientist said during a presentation at Murray Hartman’s ScienceOrama in […] Read more
Apps help identify invasive weeds
In March David Andrews, a cattle rancher from Irricana, Alta, took photos of an unusual weed on pastureland near his farm. Andrews suspected that the two-metre-tall weed was palmer amaranth, a weed found in most American states but not in Western Canada, yet. Weed experts in Alberta and Arkansas looked at the photos and concluded […] Read more
Stop and smell the dirt
University of Alberta researchers develop a soil heatlh test by evaluating the composition of the soil
Most farmers and gardeners recognize healthy soil. It has a certain look and smell and likely feels softer than poorly conditioned soil. That sense of quality is mostly based on experience and scientists have struggled to measure the traits of healthy soil — until now. Researchers at the University of Alberta have developed a test […] Read more
Field edge analysis platform delivers the news fast
Sentera’s new software allows growers to send their drones out to gather photos, determine trouble spots and take action quickly
Farmers who access early warning data on poor emergence have the opportunity to spray out or rip up those tardy acres for replanting or go in with remedial nutrition to rescue them. The key is to know as soon as possible after emergence if you need to take such action. One week too late can […] Read more
Drones spit out facts, not answers
LACOMBE, Alta. — Chris Neeser has been studying drones for Alberta Agriculture since 2014 to gauge the usefulness of current technology in agricultural applications. “We examined the usefulness of imagery from UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles) for the purpose of weed and disease forecasting, and hopefully the process might answer some of the questions in case […] Read more
