“15 to 20 years ago it made me nervous to drive past a canola field waiting to be straight cut. But now…our genetics have improved, our ability to handle that crop, and the size of our combines and ability to handle that crop and harvest it in a timely fashion has gotten much better.” This… Read more »
Category: Canola Harvest
Canola School: Following the smooth side — a tip for assessing maturity
When it comes to assessing canola maturity at this time of eyar, it can be tricky to see what’s what, especially when it comes to a thick canola crop. In this Canola School episode, Keith Gabert, agronomy specialist with the Canola Council of Canada, shares a tip for finding the main stem — a trick… Read more »
Canola School: It’s time to start thinking about harvest loss management
As canola fields start to turn yellow, It may feel like it’s a long time away, but weknow all too well, harvest comes very quickly. And with harvest, comes harvest loss management. After a season full of nurturing crops to get the best possible outcome, we don’t always realize how much of the final product… Read more »
Canola School: Free Lunch, Mouse Poop, and Tough Lessons on Overwintered Canola Pt. 2
You can’t really blame mice and deer from taking a bite out of overwintering canola swaths — your crop is literally a giant buffet for them. And, of course, animals have never heard the saying “don’t poop where you eat,” and so, to add insult to injury, not only has overwintered canola been downgraded by… Read more »
Canola School: Free Fatty Acids & Funky Colours — Understanding What Happens to Over-Wintered Canola Pt. 1
The unprecedented amount of canola left in the field over winter in Saskatchewan and Alberta has producers and processors trying to figure out the value of this crop. Very little research has been done previously on the impact of snow and over-wintering on canola quality, says Veronique Barthet, oilseed research scientist at the Canadian Grain… Read more »
Canola School: Babysitting High-Maintenance Canola in the Bin
As if canola harvest hasn’t been hard enough with all the snow and rain, the work won’t end when this crop enters the bin. It’s going to require some babysitting. “Number one when you’re taking off tough grain like this is it’s not ‘put it away and forget it’. It’s a 24-hour job type of thing…. Read more »
Canola School: Harvesting Snow-Bound and Frozen Canola
It might only be the middle of October, but it looks and feels like winter in parts of Western Canada, especially as you move north and west in Alberta and Saskatchewan. Snow and freezing rain have left many canola growers with a helpless feeling as crop that was ready to be harvested is now under… Read more »
Canola School: Fixing Up Harvest Ruts
Wet conditions at harvest inevitably result in a mess, as heavy combines and grain carts leave their mark in the soft soil. With above normal rainfall extending into harvest in parts of Western Canada, we’re seeing some deep ruts and serious compaction from harvest equipment. “That wheel traffic compaction can go as deep as three… Read more »
Canola School: Solving the Mystery of Heated Canola
Maybe it’s due to news traveling faster on social media than it used to, but there have been a fair number of reports of canola heating in the bin this winter. Producers who find themselves in these unfortunate situations are often left scratching their heads wondering why it happened. Was it harvested too early? Was it straight-cut or… Read more »
Canola School: Harvest Management — It’s Not All or Nothing
In recent years, the conversation around harvest management has heated up, with the inclusion of a debate that centres around straight cutting versus swathing. But, says RealAgriculture’s Shaun Haney, “debate is the wrong word.” “We get trapped into this all or nothing scenario — it’s sort of like tillage versus no-till — right? You’re either one or you’re… Read more »
Canola School: What Caused Premature Ripening? Tips for End of Season Scouting
While you’re in the field checking canola to see if it’s ready to be cut, or perhaps already swathing or harvesting it, it’s also a good time to assess the toll disease took on your crop. Sclerotinia, blackleg and clubroot can all cause premature ripening, as disease symptoms become more obvious at the end of the season,… Read more »
Canola School: Cutting Canola in the Heat
Hot conditions can have an impact on both yield and quality in canola, making timing more important when swathing or straight-cutting the crop. Much of Western Canada has experienced a mid-August heat wave, with fields maturing rapidly in the heat. For canola, this means the time to cut can sneak up quickly. In this Canola… Read more »
Canola School: A Crop (Not) Worth Combining
Canola fields with spotty emergence and heat-blasted pods have farmers in parts of the prairies grappling with the thought that their crops might not be worth combining. But that doesn’t mean it’s time to till it under. “There are some other uses for canola that we normally wouldn’t consider,” says Keith Gabert, agronomy specialist with the Canola Council… Read more »
Canola School: Managing High-Green Yields
As little as 2% green seed in a canola sample can cause the loss of a No. 1 grade in Canada, traditionally equating to roughly $10-15/tonne. Immature canola seed naturally contains chlorophyll, a green pigment essential for photosynthesis. As canola seeds mature, enzymes remove the chlorophyll, a process thought to improve seed longevity. The enzymes responsible, however, are… Read more »
Canola School: Swathing Before or After Frost
With the canola crop maturing later than normal in parts of Western Canada, there’s some concern about frost hurting the crop. Temperatures dipped close to freezing in some parts of the Prairies earlier this week, with reports of light frost in northern Alberta. In this Canola School, Warren Ward, agronomy specialist for Eastern Saskatchewan with… Read more »