White mould of soybeans, dry beans and sunflowers is the same disease as sclerotinia of canola and sunflowers. What’s more, it’s a disease that can infect a multitude of broadleaf weeds. The endemic nature and soil survivability of the pathogen make it a tough disease to keep on top of. To tackle management of this… Read More
Category: Sunflowers
The agronomic impacts of what has been a wild year for the Ontario growing season are beginning to accumulate, in the form of rock hard soil, fuzzy white plants, and double cobs. For this early August episode of Wheat Pete’s Word, host Peter Johnson tackles the big question of making oat hay after wheat, if… Read More
Thanks to science, Jay Curtis is alive today. The 58 year-old St. Thomas resident was told he was at risk for prostate cancer in his late 50s when a routine prostate specific antigen (PSA) test indicated he could have a problem. When the levels kept rising, a biopsy revealed the presence of cancer. But Curtis,… Read More
Keep your soil covered, do as little tillage as possible, maintain a living root system 365 days a year, and fit it all into an economic model that makes money: this is sustainable soil health. It’s a challenge, for sure, but it’s one Dresden, Ont., farmer Woody Van Arkel is happy to tackle. On this… Read More
If you’ve been waiting for Peter ‘Wheat Pete’ Johnson to answer your question about soil sampling, you’re going to have to wait another week, because this week is mostly about corn, corn, and more corn. And that’s just the kind of week it’s been in Ontario, as corn harvest ever so slowly creeps towards complete… Read More
What do you get when you connect two ‘city kid’ filmmakers, a world-class chef, and nine farmers and their families? You get Before The Plate, a genuine behind-the-kitchen-door, on-the-farm look at how food is produced in Canada, and the passion and commitment chefs and farmers apply to their craft. The driving force behind the film… Read More
Despite a tough year, there are reports of Ontario elevators running at full capacity or right full. Some farmers are reporting a record wheat and soybean year, which explains the full delivery points, but as harvest winds down many farmers will be happy with average, at best. That’s where we start with this week’s Wheat Pete’s Word,… Read More
While sunflowers often pencil out well, concerns about quality and yield risk at the end of the year are all-too-common when it comes to growing them. “It’s a high value crop and if you treat it that way, it’s going to pay,” says Troy Turner, agronomist for the National Sunflower Association of Canada, in the… Read More
Sunflowers may rival flax for the honour of “prettiest crop,” but this brightly flowered food and oilseed crop has another rather dubious distinction — disease magnet. From the very ominous sounding phoma black stem, to the insidious sclerotinia, Real Agriculture caught up with Sam Markell, extension plant pathologist with North Dakota State University to talk… Read More
Ever wondered what it would be like to skim just above beautiful flowering sunflowers on a bright summer day? We can’t arrange a real-life ride-along in a crop duster, but courtesy of Mark Rohrich and Jenny Dewey Rohrich at Maverick Ag and LaDelle George of LaDelle’s Spraying service, based in North Dakota, you can at… Read More
Fairfax, Manitoba – An over $1.8M contribution to the non-profit National Sunflower Association of Canada (NSAC) was announced today, by Member of Parliament Larry Maguire (Brandon-Souris), on behalf of Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz and the Honourable Ron Kostyshyn, Manitoba Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Development. The funding will support the development of new seed varieties and boost sunflower acreage… Read More
The first few weeks’ of crop growth are critical for two things — one, evaluating your seeding or planting pass; and, two, providing timely protection for the crop at its most vulnerable stage. In this special version of the Agronomy Geeks podcast, I’m joined by Brunel Sabourin, agronomic advisor with Cargill based at Morris, Man…. Read More
A basic crop budget will tally up fixed and variable costs to compare to average or projected crop prices, yes, but how do you account for some non-cash pros and cons of growing a particular crop? These benefits can range from soil management, to ease of seeding, to herbicide resistance management and more. Each of… Read More
Sunflowers aren’t just one of the prettiest crops to grow, they’re also an increasingly attractive cropping option for 2014 for some areas. While still a small acreage area crop in Manitoba, both oil and confection sunflowers can be a profitable option and one with several benefits that go beyond a basic crop budget. That’s the… Read More