From the very simple, to the GPS-reference, cloud-shared, multi-user type, the number of made-for-agriculture apps grows each month. If you’ve got a current smartphone or tablet, you’re set to begin incorporating these handy time savers and data-management tools into your farm. If you’re somewhat overwhelmed by the technology, fear not. Some apps are really just… Read More
Month: April 2014
With new varieties readily available, growing tiny crab apples isn’t your only option, prairie-dwellers! In 2008, the University of Saskatchewan released Prairie Sensation, an apple evolved to our prairie climate, and at roughly seven to nearly 8.5 cm in diameter, it’s no crab. Though apple trees are largely grown as a hobby, with keen interest in… Read More
Are you seeding your canola at 5lb/ac? Unless your seed rate was calculated based on that seed lot’s thousand kernel weight (TKW), you may be losing yield potential, as plant numbers decline with increasing seed size. Angela Brackenreed, agronomy specialist with the Canola Council of Canada, suggests re-calibrating when the TKW of a seed lot… Read More
A number of years ago, one of the first farm meetings I attended as a young radio reporter on the agriculture beat had a speaker talking on a subject that few farmers had considered. It was on what role activism would play in food production down the road, and how farmers could react. At the… Read More
Whether you’ve recently purchased a planter, or you’re bringing it out of hibernation, making sure it’s in good working order is essential to good establishment. Besides greasing, checking hydraulic hoses and vacuuming mouse-made nests, you should also check that the planter is running level, and with the correct amount of down pressure. Related: The Pros and… Read More
I hope you’re not sick of the grains logistics controversy, because I thoroughly enjoyed having the opportunity to talk to Derek Tallon, a grain producer from Lafleche, Sask., at the 2014 Grain Summit in Saskatoon. Tallon had the daunting task of tackling the “Next Steps for Engagement and Finding Solutions.” Related: Hear from Ian McCreary… Read More
It’s hard to think of cutting crops when we haven’t finished shoveling the seeders out of snowbanks, but boy is it nice to imagine sitting in this harvester in the sunshine. Meet the Jaguar 960, from Claas. This harvester runs with at 653 hp, with a large cooling system in the centre and a Tier… Read More
If you cannot see the embedded player, please click here to hear this audio. As we ended the month of March and shovelled our way through “spring” weather in to April, the grain markets were hit with a fairly uneventful Stocks and Acreage report from the USDA. The biggest shock came in the form of… Read More
As the snow finally melts in Ontario, cash crop farmers have a lot to do in a short window. There’s still plenty of corn out there and lots of unfinished tillage work. In this episode of the Ontario Agronomy Geeks podcast, Bernard Tobin talks strategy with agronomist Mervyn Erb of Agri-Solve Inc. — what should… Read More
I had the very fortunate opportunity this week to travel to the United Kingdom and have a visit with the people at Warburtons. Warburtons is the largest bakery in the United Kingdom and has a special connection with not only the consumers of its premium bread, but also UK and Canadian farmers. Yes, I said… Read More
The theme of TechTour is simple — highlight products and services out there that save farmers time, money or both. A recent poll we ran here on RealAgriculture suggested that the sprayer is one busy implement, which makes it incredibly important for spraying to be accomplished efficiently. But efficiency doesn’t mean just going fast. The… Read More
Viterra announced today its intention to build a new high throughput grain elevator at Kindersley, Sask. The facility will have a storage capacity of 34,000 metrics tonnes and a 108 railcar spot. Kyle Jeworski, Viterra’s President and CEO for North America said in a press release, “Viterra has a long history of serving farm customers… Read More
Let’s call the March 31st USDA report the kickoff to the new growing season’s marketing year. Yes, markets are continuous and fluid, but this first glimpse of planting intentions for the U.S. is, for some, the first report in a while that really gets interesting. This week, RealAgriculture editor, Lyndsey Smith, is joined by Jon… Read More
Some of you reading this have likely either consumed unpasteurized milk, or know someone who has, and been perfectly fine for the experience. Ditto for University of Guelph food scientist Prof. Art Hill, a leading authority on milk safety. Some 50 years ago on the family dairy farm on Manitoulin Island, he drank unpasteurized milk… Read More
As evolution should dictate, there are substantial benefits to social behaviour in animals, provided that behaviour increases their fitness (or likelihood to reproduce). We see unique social behaviour in many species, including ourselves and our bovine counterparts. In cattle, social behaviours range from grooming to bonding, and witnessed accounts of cows protecting their young and… Read More