It’s always amazing to see how much can transpire in just one week. Since Peter “Wheat Pete” Johnson returned from Montana last week, much of Ontario and the Prairies got a foot of snow or more, someone fell asleep on the listener line, and Pete owes someone a steak dinner over Ontario’s average corn yields…. Read More
Planting corn into a cultivated strip provides many soil health and management benefits, but dealing with residue from the previous crop can prove challenging. In this video report from 2021 Ontario Diagnostic Days, Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs corn specialist Ben Rosser and Anderson Agronomy Services agronomist Chad Anderson share what they’re learning from… Read More
2021 was a big year for corn yield in Ontario. Although not official, the average yield is expected to check in at just over 200 bu/ac — a new record. On this episode of RealAgriculture’s Corn School, we take a closer look at where this yield is coming from with Purdue University agronomy professor Dr…. Read More
Corn rootworm resistance to Bt proteins and hybrids is a growing concern for Ontario corn producers. In this video report from Ontario Diagnostic Days 2021, University of Guelph research scientist Jocelyn Smith helps growers understand corn rootworm’s life cycle and how to rate corn roots for rootworm injury. She also discusses how growers can work with researchers to… Read More
In this first-of-the-year episode of Wheat Pete’s Word, host Peter Johnson discusses Ontario Ag Conference (on now), soil nutrient bank accounts, and low volumes going through a combine. Plus, Johnson works through a tiling/drainage problem for clay textured knolls. Have a question you’d like Johnson to address or some yield results to send in? Disagree… Read More
When glyphosate-resistant waterhemp was first discovered in Lambton County in 2014, University of Guelph weed scientist Peter Sikkema never imagined the course the weed would take across Ontario, or the speed it would travel. Fast forward to 2022 and glyphosate-resistant waterhemp has moved 700 kilometres east to Leeds & Grenville County. The invading resistant weed, often… Read More
With high fertilizer prices heading into 2022, corn growers can’t afford to over-apply nutrients. But they also can’t risk losing money by shorting the crop of its fertility needs. On the season-ending episode of RealAgriculture’s Corn School for 2021, University of Guelph associate professor Dr. David Hooker returns to comment on this conundrum and share… Read More
Where on earth did all this corn yield come from?! Combines in Ontario are rolling through beans and on to corn, and the results are astonishing, says Peter “Wheat Pete” Johnson in this episode of the Word. This week’s episode asks that question, plus delves into rust on winter wheat, wheat acres in the ground,… Read More
Crop tours earlier this growing season predicted record corn yields in Ontario, and yield monitors and truck traffic confirm the rumour. Across much of the province, farmers are reporting solid to record-breaking yields — even Peter “Wheat Pete” Johnson is having to split-weigh his research plots! Commercial growers are harvesting huge volumes of grain and… Read More
With nitrogen prices continuing to soar, many farmers are looking for ways to manage the cost of fertilizer as well as meet crop demands for the key nutrient in 2022. This week, Corteva Agriscience Canada put a new option on the table for farmers to consider with the launch of Utrisha N, the company’s first nutrient efficiency… Read More
Protecting your corn crop from disease throughout the growing season can be a challenge. On this episode of RealAgriculture’s Corn School, Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs plant pathologist Albert Tenuta and University of Guelph associate professor Dave Hooker team up to offer tips on how to select a fungicide and stage the… Read More
Whether or not you’re farming healthy soils depends on many things, says Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food, and Rural Affairs soil specialist Anne Verhallen. When asked what makes a healthy soil, Verhallen says that growers need to think first about the qualities of their soil, including properties such as soil texture — are you farming… Read More
The numbers are rolling in — from fantastic corn yields, to unbelievable rain amounts in some areas of Ontario. In this week’s Wheat Pete’s Word, host Peter Johnson asks for feedback on a few things, including what some of your favourite Wheat Pete sayings are, if you prefer rain in inches or millimetres (or either,… Read More
How does corn crop emergence after planting play into ear and cob development, and eventually yield? Earlier in the growing season, Sara Meidlinger, market development agronomist at PRIDE Seeds, set up some flag tests that measured emergence in 1/1000th of an acre, in seven hybrid variety strips. In this Corn School episode, Meidlinger goes over the results… Read More
Throughout corn harvest, much attention is paid to test weight as the crop works through the combine, into the bin, and off to market. But does test weight really matter? On this episode of The Sharp Edge, Maizex Seeds agronomist Greg Stewart explains why he believes growers would be better rewarded if they focused on… Read More