Seed corn harvest in southern Ontario typically gets underway in early September. Why so early? It’s all about protecting seed quality, says PRIDE Seeds field production manager Mike Bechard. On this episode of the RealAgriculture Corn School, host Bernard Tobin returns to Chatham, Ont. for part three of our series on the critical points of… Read More
Category: Crop Schools
Farmers across Canada care deeply about their soil but Derek and Tannis Axten of Axten Farms take it to a whole other level. The Minton, Sask., farmers’ commitment is is even written into their company’s tagline — loyal to the soil. “The reason I like it is it kind of reminds us that everything we… Read More
As the growing season winds down, fall provides a critical opportunity for weed management — especially in those soybean fields that are a bit behind in the maturity game. As Ken Currah of BASF explains in our latest episode of the Soybean School, this time of the year the focus is going to be on… Read More
Pulse crops, for the most part, prefer drier conditions; however, the level of drought in some areas of the Prairies over the past few years has been too much for even them. Following multiple years of drought, it becomes more important for farmers to conduct soil tests ahead of planting pulse crops, such as lentils… Read More
Seven years ago, Chris Moore and Lyndsey Smith decided they needed more acres if they were going run a viable sheep farm. But rather than buy land, the partners opted to try their hand at solar grazing their Shady Creek Lamb flock at a solar power installation near their Kinburn, Ont., home farm. What started as… Read More
When the year starts early and starts dry, producers and researchers alike get pretty excited about the year ahead for edible beans. That was the story for the Ontario crop until July, when torrential and frequent rainfall began over much of the growing region and continued through August. The result, explains University of Guelph associate… Read More
Cool, wet conditions have Ontario growers wondering when soybeans will mature and whether the crop can escape the impact of fall frosts. On this episode of the RealAgriculture Soybean School, host Bernard Tobin catches up with Horst Bohner, Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs soybean specialist, to discuss what needs to happen in… Read More
A wet growing season plus high humidity and moisture at tasseling has many Ontario corn producers asking about the potential for ear mould and gibberella when combines start to roll at harvest. On this episode of the RealAgriculture Corn School, host Bernard Tobin is joined by PRIDE Seeds product manager Matt Chapple for a look… Read More
The layers of a soil profile are like a biography, telling the long-term history of a soil, but they also tell a shorter-term story about what happens with water and plant nutrients as crops are grown each year. This Soil School episode takes us not quite six feet down in a soil pit in a… Read More
Planting winter wheat on time is the most cost effective way to increase winter wheat yields in Ontario. That’s the key message Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs cereals specialist Joanna Follings has for growers as winter wheat planting gets underway in the province. “Timely planting is so so critical to optimizing your… Read More
European corn borer wreaked havoc for decades in cornfields across North America before the adoption of transgenic traits (Bt) in the late 1990s effectively punched out the pest. Earlier this year at Southwest Crop Diagnostic Days at the University of Guelph’s Ridgetown campus, Ontario ministry of agriculture entomologist Tracey Baute noted that the yield-robbing insect… Read More
There are many different approaches to harvesting edible beans, from typical combine setups used for other crops to harvesters designed specifically for beans. Specialized bean combines have historically been pull-type designs, but a new machine harvesting beans on a farm in southern Manitoba is believed to be the first factory-built self-propelled bean combine in Canada…. Read More
It hurts RealAgriculture agronomist Peter Johnson to talk about broadcasting winter wheat seed into standing soybeans, but growers have been peppering him with questions about the practice. Johnson would rather see growers plant wheat with a drill but with many Ontario soybean fields “green as grass” as the calendar turns to September, in some areas… Read More
Palmer amaranth, the aggressive and highly competitive pigweed species that U.S. farmers have been tussling with for almost 30 years, has been found in Ontario. Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs weed specialist Mike Cowbrough says DNA testing has confirmed that a plant found in a Wellington County field is palmer amaranth. He… Read More
How can farmers diagnose soil fertility issues? What tools can identify nutrient deficiencies and best manage variability across fields and farms? On this episode of RealAgriculture’s Soil School, Bernard Tobin visits Southwest Crop Diagnostic Days at the Ridgetown College campus, University of Guelph, to report on three soil testing and mapping technologies — GroundWork, SoilOptix… Read More