Farmer says strategy has helped him remediate fields and achieve better yield on his operation near High Prairie, Alta.
Glacier FarmMedia – Michael Strebchuk says cover crops are working on his farm in the Peace. “Our challenges have always been how to control weeds and reduce tillage,” he said during an Alberta Organic Producers Association webinar early this winter. Strebchuk, who is president of the association, farms with his family at High Prairie. The […] Read moreTag Archives cover crop
Rye proponents hope for Prairie renaissance
Industry insiders see new reason for optimism amid cover cropping programs and changes to single-use agreements
Glacier FarmMedia – Western Canada may be on the cusp of a rye renaissance. New cover cropping programs and changes to single-use agreements could double the number of Canadian rye acres within the next five to 10 years. It’s all because of a recent tweak in contractual language from seed companies on their hybrid rye […] Read more
Company seeks stinkweed acres in the U.S.
Also known as pennycress, the winter oilseed crop could make its way north to Canada once hardy varieties are developed
SASKATOON — Kevin Cook wants farmers to grow more weeds. He is the vice-president of breeding at CoverCress Inc., a company that has successfully converted stinkweed, also known as pennycress, into a viable winter oilseed cover crop. The initial target market for the crop will be the central United States but it could eventually make […] Read more
Researchers look at companions for caraway
INDIAN HEAD, Sask. — Caraway acreage isn’t huge compared to mainstream crops, but some farmers grow it. In 2021, Saskatchewan farmers seeded about 2,100 acres. “Caraway is a small but valuable spice crop,” said Bill May, Agriculture Canada research scientist at Indian Head during a recent field day. He is examining companion crops for caraway. […] Read more
Daikon radish cover crop acts as natural tillage
Farmer who produces the crop for seed says walking in a field in which it has grown feels like walking on a marshmallow
NEW NORWAY, Alta. — Fields of yellow-flowered canola are common across the Prairies, but a 50-acre field of white-flowered radish is a car stopper. Last year Ryan Mowat grew an eight-acre plot to see if the daikon radish, or forage or tillage radish, would grow and set seed at his central Alberta farm. It was […] Read more
