Category: Wheat Midge

Orange wheat blossom midge — or simply, the wheat midge — devastated spring wheat yields in the ’90s. Since then, wheat breeders have been working hard to build protection into wheat varieties. To help with tips to scout for the pest, why spraying is a limited option, how Field Heroes help, and what’s new in… Read More

Insect problems often come in cycles, waves, and even by stiff breezes. Knowing which pests are carried in, purposefully march in, or overwinter is key to determining when in the year to begin scouting and where to look. From sticky traps to sweep nets, the insect population in any crop is staggering. But not all… Read More

Insect pests can make or break a season. There are many factors that contribute to pest population levels and that complicates the possible control decisions, from what chemicals can be used and if levels require it. Dr. James Tansey, entomologist for the Saskatchewan Ministry of Agriculture, says that there are several possible pests to look… Read More

There are two main insect pests of wheat that keep breeders busy: the wheat stem sawfly and the wheat midge. There is resistance to each and effective predators of each, but the insects still manage to eat a significant amount of wheat yield each year. To unpack how these two pests cut yield, quality, or… Read More

Every year, Sask Wheat and other Prairie wheat groups go out and sample soil to look for wheat midge cocoons that have overwintered, and then create a forecast map from that information. The wheat midge forecast map is showing a lot of red, which is a bit alarming. Wheat midge is definitely on Tyler Wist’s… Read More

There are secret, mysterious agents lurking in crop stubble. But have no fear, they’re on your side. Many are familiar with wheat midge and the damage the insect can cause, but you might be less familiar with the parasitoid that attacks this crop pest. Host Shaun Haney is joined by Jennifer Otani, pest management biologist… Read More

Whether for feed or food, in a dry season or wet, successful wheat and barley establishment is unique to the crop type. Plenty of farmers are swapping some acres into barley this year, and that added rotation diversity is a good thing says today’s RealAg LIVE! guest, Sheri Strydhost, agronomy research specialist with Alberta Wheat &… Read More

There’s no better time to plan for success than just ahead of the spring season. Now is the time to make the final decisions on seed lots, seeding rates, seed treatments and more. Of course once that’s all said and done, there’s still plenty to do in-season says Jeremy Boychyn, agronomy research extension specialist for the… Read More

For this episode of RealAg LIVE!, we pull back the curtain ever so slightly and catch a glimpse of what its like to have to choose your cropping mix four years in advance. Well, running a seed company isn’t exactly like that, but as Jim Bagshaw of Alliance Seed explains, there are parallels between what… Read More

What’s good for wheat growth is good for wheat midge, says research scientist Tyler Wist, of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, based at Saskatoon, Sask. What’s more, these tiny pests can cause big issues, even in very low numbers, so scouting is one key aspect of management. In this edition of RealAgriculture’s Wheat School, Wist also… Read More