What a difference a year makes. Back in spring 2015, Ontario farmers were scrambling to manage an abundance of corn stalk residue and grappling with questions about tillage and how to fix fields full of ruts caused by a challenging harvest. Fast forward to spring 2016 and farmers are facing a much more favourable planting… Read More

How confident are you that your pea and lentil seed is not limiting yield potential before you even put it in the ground? With rising acres leading to a shortage of certified seed, there are serious concerns about the quality of the seed that will be used this spring. Sarah Foster of 20/20 Seed Labs joins our own Kelvin Heppner… Read More

There’s plenty of excitement surrounding lentils heading into the 2016 growing season, with record acres expected. In this Pulse School episode, Shannon Chant of Saskatchewan’s Ministry of Agriculture shares her top five tips for a good (or even great) lentil crop: 5 Tips for a Great Lentil Crop Good quality seed — Of course it… Read More

Regulatory restrictions are not on the radar in Manitoba, but the province’s agriculture entomologist suggests farmers in Western Canada should ask themselves “why?” before using neonicotinoid seed treatments. The Ontario and Quebec governments are restricting the use of insecticide-treated seed in response to concerns about neonics hurting bee health, but there haven’t been the same problems with pollinator populations… Read More

The first secret of soybean success really isn’t much of a secret, confesses agronomist Ross Bender. It all comes down to the weather, specifically rain in August. But farmers do have an opportunity to impact the remaining production factors that make up the six secrets of soybean success, says Bender, senior agronomist for the Mosaic… Read More

More than 280 Certified Crop Advisors (CCAs) jammed into a London, Ontario hotel last week to talk agronomy, information and regulation. It was the largest turnout ever for the Ontario Certified Crop Advisors Association annual meeting since the event began 13 years ago. The province currently has 545 active CCAs and the number is expected… Read More

It’s been a good news week for Grain Farmers of Ontario chair Mark Brock. But he’s unsure how positive reports on the impacts neonicotinoid seed treatments have on pollinators will affect provincial grain farmers. Earlier this week, reports from Health Canada and the Pest Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA) delivered a one-two punch supporting the embattled… Read More

If farmers want to supersize their corn yields, they have to challenge conventional thinking and become students of the crop. That was the main message National Corn Growers Association yield contest champion Randy Dowdy shared with hundreds of farmers at the 2016 SouthWest Agricultural Conference in Ridgetown, Ontario earlier this week. In 2014, Dowdy set… Read More