Many Ontario farmers will remember when they routinely sprayed soybean crops to control bean leaf beetle. That changed 10 years ago with the introduction of neonicotinoid insecticide seed treatments, which helped suppress populations of the pest in Ontario and many U.S. states. But the pest is mounting a comeback as neonic use continues to decline and… Read more »
Category: Soybean Disease, Weeds & Insects
Soybean School: Why tackle herbicide resistance with multiple modes of action?
Many agronomists talk about the importance of multiple modes of action when planning a weed control program. In this episode of RealAgriculture’s Soybean School, Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs weed specialist Mike Cowbrough shows you why. We catch up with Cowbrough as he surveys a patch of Canada fleabane that has survived… Read more »
Soybean School: Scout to evaluate your stand and when to go rolling
What’s your strategy when scouting a newly emerged soybean field? When Agromart Group agronomist Steph Kowalski walks into a soybean field this time of year, the first thing she looks to assess is final emergence and population. “It’s important to know how well we got that seed into the ground,” Kowalski tells RealAgriculture’s Bernard Tobin… Read more »
Soybean School: Does row orientation impact weed pressure and yield?
By François Tardif Many master gardeners would tell you that to maximize your vegetable yields, rows need to be oriented in a north-south manner. This is supposed to maximize light interception by the crops, which in turn maximizes photosynthesis. In contrast, east-west rows have more shading and this negatively impacts yields. Is the same true… Read more »
Soybean School: Mind your fencerows to reduce weed resistance
Are we doing enough to reduce the herbicide-resistance weed seedbank on Ontario farms? That’s a question AGRIS Co-operative agronomist Dale Cowan wants farmers in the province to consider when they’re planning their weed control programs for this year. Cowan recently attended the Commodity Classic in Anaheim, California, where he talked with farmers from Mississippi who… Read more »
Soybean School: Preparing to battle SCN when (not if) it is found in Western Canada
Soybean growers in Western Canada have not yet had to face a soil-borne pest that has hurt yields in other soybean growing regions, but it’s only a matter of time. Soybean cyst nematode (SCN) has steadily spread north along the Red River and has been found in soils on at least two farms near the… Read more »
Soybean School: New coalition tackles growing nematode resistance
Soybean cyst nematode (SCN) is the crop’s number one yield-robbing pest, and the problem is only going to get worse as the pest continues to breakdown the defence provided by SCN-resistant soybean varieties. It really is a case of the pest becoming “resistant to the resistance,” says Iowa State nematologist Greg Tylka. About 95 percent… Read more »
Soybean School: How do researchers unlock higher yields?
Does throwing the kitchen sink at your soybean crop provide an economic yield response? The answer is a definitive “No” says University of Minnesota associate professor Seth Naeve. His conclusion is based on the the results of a huge three-year U.S. study that he shared with growers attending the Southwest Agricultural Conference in Ridgetown, Ont.,… Read more »
Soybean School: How wide is your spring burndown window?
If you have weeds pop up prior to planting soybeans you can control them with a burndown herbicide application. But what happens when rain and wind conspire to prevent you from applying a burndown and you have to control weeds after planting? In this episode of the Soybean School, OMAFRA weed control specialist Mike Cowbrough… Read more »
Soybean School: Investment needed to fend off nematodes
Soybean cyst nematode (SCN) is the leading cause of yield loss for the oilseed crop across North America. And unless a new source of resistance is found to fend off the pest, growers can expect to see SCN gobble up an increasing percentage of their yield in the years ahead. That was the message delivered… Read more »
Soybean School: Make resistance a priority when selecting varieties
Next time you chose a soybean variety, don’t just consider yield trials. Be sure to take a close look at disease trials; they help determine whether the yield potential of the variety you select will become reality in your field, says OMAFRA plant pathologist Albert Tenuta. In this episode of the Soybean School, we catch up… Read more »
Soybean School: Ontario growers better positioned to manage dicamba
In 2017, many U.S. growers struggled to manage dicamba use with increasing acres of dicamba-tolerant Xtend soybeans. The dicamba story in Ontario, however, was much different, as growers had few issues with managing the marriage of the herbicide and the new trait. In this edition of RealAgriculture Soybean School, OMAFRA weed specialist Mike Cowbrough explains… Read more »
Soybean School: Learning from Ontario’s 2017 crop
It’s not official, but it looks like Ontario’s 2017 soybean yield will come in at around 43 bushels per acre. That’s down from the 46-bushel five-year average, but considering the challenges Mother Nature threw at the crop during the past growing year, OMAFRA soybean specialist Horst Bohner will take it. In this edition of RealAgriculture… Read more »
Soybean School: Rotating resistant varieties key to controlling SCN
Soybean cyst nematodes have been stealing yield in Ontario fields for more than 20 years. SCN-resistant varieties are a key tool to help defend against the invading pest, but growers need to ensure they’re not putting the effectiveness of these resistant varieties at risk. In this episode of RealAgriculture Soybean School, OMAFRA plant pathologist Albert… Read more »
Soybean School: Putting the pinch on cyst nematode
Soybean cyst nematode (SCN) continues to spread across Ontario. The yield-robbing pest was first discovered in the southwest of the province in 1988 and continues to expand north and eastward. OMAFRA plant pathologist Albert Tenuta encourages all growers to take a close look at their soybean fields to determine whether the pest is present. SCN… Read more »