With the supremely wet weather that has been significantly delaying corn and soybean. Another one of the impacts of this wet weather is the need to consider fungicides for your wheat crop. Wet conditions tend to bring on disease and that can dampen your yield expectations if not handled accordingly. Phil Needham is a leading… Read More
Category: Machinery
Blog post by John Guelly, BSc, P.Eng Wheat and Canola Farmer and Ag Engineer at Westlock, AB So we just ordered a new tractor, state of the art 2011 JD 8260R, complete with all the bells and whistles. We sold our old tractor to some neighbors and I asked them if they also were interested… Read More
As you dig out the drifts around your seeder and brush the snow off of it, there is a bit of a pre-seed inspection to be done. There is the standard replacement of broken parts that has to be done, but there are also the small bugs and glitches that hold up the process as… Read More
The way that feedyard owners handle cattle has a massive impact on gains and the overall health of the animal. Many of you have used the snake and tub concept originally designed by Temple Grandin (i think?) When I was at the NCBA convention I ran into a very cool booth that was giving live… Read More
There is a movement afoot in cereal growing world to push farmers to wider row spacing. Some researchers say that this is a great way to prevent a covered canopy which will naturally minimize crop leaf disease while others are more skeptical. One of the skeptics is David Bergen from GEN Manufacturing. GEN engineers openers… Read More
With the increased focus spraying fungicides and foliar application, nozzle technology is gaining increased attention. Whether its low pressure, high pressure, big droplet, small droplet, fan or cone, nozzle selection incredibly important to getting effective coverage and impact. At CropWeek 2011 in Saskatoon, Gary Moffat talked to me about nozzle technology and what kind of… Read More
When I go to Farm shows and do booth interviews, one of my content decisions is looking at the booths that are gaining attention. At CropWeek 2011 in Saskatoon one of the booths that was really busy was the Salford booth. Many of our Eastern Canadian viewers will be very familiar with Salford while they… Read More
When farmers choose varieties one of the most common used criteria is stand ability. Sometimes crops lodge no matte what variety you choose due to late moisture, wind or above average weight of the crop. One of the tools that farmers are including on their combine headers is Flexxifinger crop lifters. At CropWeek 2011 in… Read More
Whether you are talking about your car engines or tractor engines, there is a constant push from manufacturers to increase fuel economy and meet new emission requirements without losing performance. This is not an easy task. In the field, in tough situations farmers need performance and that extra horsepower that is going to get you… Read More
In case you haven’t noticed, equipment is getting bigger every year. Bigger is always relative depending on where you farm. As farms become larger, farmers need to make sure that they are operating with the most ideal efficiency. Getting bigger equipment is not always as easy because it requires larger trucks, larger tractors and more… Read More
At one time the farmer mainly used horses, then motorbikes, then quads and now the Utility Terrain Vehicle (UTV) has become a common tool on the farm. For many ranchers and farmers these utility vehicles have created a real sense of versatility and handiness. I must admit that when the UTV first was introduced I… Read More
Whenever I attend farm shows I always like to check out the different implements. When you travel out of your home region you tend to see different implements than your own. This is a great way to pick up on tools and techniques that are being used in different regions and maybe apply them to… Read More
Minimizing the loss of silage is very important in any livestock operation whether you are running a dairy or a feedyard. Silage can be stored in a pit, silo or the bale wrapper. Proper storage is very important feeding requirements. What kind of silage storage you choose will somewhat depend on your farm location or… Read More
The smell of a liquid manure spreader (better known as a honey wagon) is very familiar in many rural areas of Canada. Liquid manure spreaders are very popular in hog and dairy operations. Many people argue that once incorporated, liquid manure is highly beneficial in comparison to its solid manure alternative. In talking to farmers… Read More
By Shaun Haney Agriculture has some untouchable topics that we are just not supposed to talk about. One of them is dealing with aging farm workers. On the farm we are taught to respect our elders but in some cases in agriculture we take this to high levels of absurdity. Recently, in northern Alberta… Read More