Ag Canada scientists weigh the cost and benefit of the machine designed to pulverize weed seeds during harvest
LACOMBE, Alta. — Agriculture Canada began working with the Harrington Seed Destructor last fall to see how it handles weed seeds in western Canadian fields. The machine was built in Australia to help control weed seeds during harvest. “Harvest weed seed control attempts to stop viable weeds seeds from going back into your seed bank,” […] Read moreTag Archives Equipment — page 5
A big storm is rolling onto the Prairies this spring
Ag Growth International has brought another seed treater to the Canadian market, called the Storm Professional, which is geared for seed growers, larger farms and commercial applicators. The Storm Pro can treat 45 bushels of wheat, barley or oats per minute, compared to the company’s original seed treater, the Storm, which treats 30. “We were […] Read more
A tale of two sectors: connecting social licenses of growing and operating
Opinion First there was precision ag. Then came decision ag. Now there is “smart ag”. All are umbrella terms to describe a variety of fundamental changes in the way we do agriculture. All turn in some fashion on doing things better when it comes to producing crops or raising livestock. It’s all about maximizing yield […] Read more
Drills: Big and slow versus small and fast
The conventional idea of big is better is challenged by European engineers who focus on smaller equipment
BRANDON — There’s a growing debate between proponents of big drills pulled at a relatively low speeds and proponents of small drills pulled at high speeds. Conventional thinkers advocate the type of wide low-speed drills that have evolved in prairie conditions over the past three decades. On the other side of the debate, a small […] Read more
Seeding cover crops just got easier, cheaper
There are benefits to seeding a cover crop after combining in the fall, then chemical burning and direct seeding into it in the spring. Cover crops can reduce erosion, increase the concentration of potassium at the soil surface, tie up nitrogen in the spring that may become available to the following crop, provide biomass and […] Read more
Better chemistry builds better tire sealant
FARGO, N.D. — A sales representative for LiquiTube says his product can fix punctures up to three quarters of an inch in heavy ply industrial tires. “The technology has made huge strides because there’s such a huge demand for tire sealants that actually work,” says Mike Davert. “It comes down to chemical engineering. The more […] Read more
Canola harvest techniques evolving
A dramatic change in how canola is harvested will occur over the next few years, according to Bayer, which predicts that more than 40 percent of Canada’s canola crop will be harvested by straight cutting by 2020. Since launching its shatter resistant hybrid a few years ago, Bayer studied the number of growers who were […] Read more
Oilfield dryers get summer job on farms
The flameless dryers are retrofitted to dry grain without transferring it from the bin, saving time and reducing kernel damage
A slowdown in the oil and gas sector provided the impetus for an innovation in grain drying. ConleyMax, a company that rents its patented flameless air heaters to the oil and gas sector, started looking for alternative income streams when that sector of the economy took a downturn. Chief executive officer Kevin Baker noticed that […] Read more
Fertilizer capacity the new bottleneck at seeding time
Putting fertilizer in the ground has become the new bottleneck as farms become larger and seeding operations more complex. As a result, more growers have been forced to buy dedicated applicators. Drill manufacturers point to their larger air tanks, saying fertilizer capacity is keeping pace with seed capacity on the latest drills. However, the drill […] Read more
Sales rebound coming: FCC
Sales of new tractors and combines are expected to increase in Canada, based on higher crop receipts in 2016 and 2017, according to Farm Credit Canada. FCC released its 2016-17 Farm Receipts and Equipment Sales report, based on projections of farm cash receipts and other economic variables, such as the Canadian dollar, interest rates and […] Read more
