Category: Canola School

Ecosystems are strange and wonderful places, and the ecosystem within canola fields is no exception. It can be easy to overlook the incredible abundance of interactions between different arthropods, including insects and spiders, happening within the canola canopy. Plus, when a farmer or agronomist sees damaged plants, it can be challenging to figure out if… Read More

Specialty canola oil currently makes up approximately 10 percent of canola crop acres. While years ago the choice to go with a specialty oil could mean a yield gap, today, options in the hybrid seed space are plentiful and that yield gap has closed. Specialty canola genetics are up there in performance with regular commodity… Read More

Soil sampling is perhaps now easier than ever before, and field sampling can now go much further than it used to in regards to mapping and data. Farmers and agronomists can, through modern soil sampling, learn more about the nutrient profile of soil – but how samples are taken is changing. Generally, soil sampling has… Read More

When it comes to choosing the next best canola hybrid, there’s so much more to consider than yield. Maturity ratings and the disease package are also key, as is the herbicide tolerance trait for the required weed control. To add one more level to the hybrid selection process, canola growers now have the option of… Read More

There are so many agronomic decisions to make when growing canola, and those decisions don’t stop even as the season comes to a close with combines ready to roll. As Ian Epp, agronomist with the Canola Council of Canada explains in this Canola School, farmers have several options to consider when staging for pre-harvest applications… Read More

As a growing season comes to a close, farmers are eager to clear off the fields and load up the bins, but it’s important not to rush through equipment set up, as machinery settings can make a big difference in final yield if not adjusted for crop conditions. With three to four bushel per acre… Read More

As farmers across the country are eager to see their hard-earned canola crop augered into bins, it is already time to start planning for the next growing season. Ordering seed is often where next year’s management decisions begin, and the decisions around which resistance package to choose can seem daunting. A large part of deciding… Read More

With an average of over 20 million seeded acres, canola is one of Canada’s most widely grown crops. Used for cooking oil, processing foods, biofuel and protein for both animal feed and human consumption, it’s safe to say that it’s important to keep this vital crop protected from diseases such as clubroot, a disease that… Read More

One of the most common sources of conversation among farmers is the weather. This makes sense, as growers’ livelihoods often depend on the balance between too hot or cold, too wet or too dry. Monitoring environmental conditions throughout the growing season can help growers the necessary decisions that impact final yield. Weather stations are one way… Read More

There’s no denying when a spray clean out has gone wrong — the streaky start to a spray pass with injured plants never seems to happen at the back of the farm, either. There are a few things at play, says Tom Wolf, co-founder of AgriMetrix and Sprayers 101. There’s the possibility of active ingredient… Read More