What’s the right choice for nozzle fan angle? 80 degrees or 110 degrees? That’s this Spray Tips’ Question of the Week and that discussion leads very nicely into the topic of this episode — ideal boom height. How do we select the right boom height? Nozzle fan angle does play a role, but so does… Read More
Category: United States
Just as in money management, investments you make in your farm’s soil nutrient bank account may be short or long term. Depending on the nutrient, crop yields, the weather and soil type, nutrient levels and availability may need immediate deposits or a long-term plan to ensure there’s enough “money” there when the crop needs it…. Read More
This week New Holland launched a global customer community platform to provide collaboration, discussions and offer premium services. The new site is MyNewHolland.com, and is now live. Setting up an account appears to be quite easy and it will be very interesting to see how farmers end up using the site over the next couple… Read More
It’s Earth Day — a day for reflection on our impact on the earth. Invariably, it’s also a day for promoting alternatives to the common way we do things — alternative energy being a main focus. In Ontario, government-funded alternative energy initiatives such as biomass generation, wind or solar energy has stirred controversy. Whether it… Read More
Three months after purchasing Lohmann SE, a German poultry health company, Elanco has announced plans to acquire yet another animal health company, but this time the added reach extends much farther than one livestock segment. Through a YouTube video shared via Tweet, Elanco’s president Jeff Simmons announced the $5.4 billion acquisition of Norvatis Animal Health,… Read More
This week in the Globe and Mail, there a feature piece on the niche dating site FarmersOnly.com. With 1 in 5 couples finding each other online, dating sites are in major growth mode. Farmers are no different than the rest of the world, it can be difficult to find that special someone in today’s hectic… Read More
The factors involved in weed management decisions vary greatly from farm to farm, so many herbicide research projects deal with variances in weather, soil and weed population presence. Products and even rates, for example, will often be catered to a specific soil zone. And, with the growing threat of herbicide resistance, it boils down to more… Read More
Do you remember those Jenga commercials as a kid? You know the ones with the jingle, “you take a block from the bottom and you put it on top!” Come on admit it, you played the game all the time as a kid back when there were no ipods or Playstations. Caterpillar has released video… Read More
UAVs (drones) have become the newest crop scouting tool for farmers to implement on the farm. Last year you maybe knew one farmer that owned one. This year I bet you can name five to 10. I know I can, and that’s just in my local area. Indiana farmer, Brian Scott is going to put… Read More
Managing for nitrogen losses in crop production is important, absolutely, but N isn’t the only nutrient at risk of being lost from the plant’s refrigerator. Phosphorus, that other macro-nutrient we know and love, is also subject to losses — and while losses may go relatively unnoticed in the cropping system, our lakes are rivers pay… Read More
Getting recognized by your peers can be special. For three equipment manufacturers, getting recognized by the North American Equipment Dealers Association is very special. Without dealers, a machinery manufacturer has very limited access to the farmer and the farmer has limited access to warranty and service. Recently the North American Equipment Dealers Association (NAEDA) announced… Read More
Do you have that very famous lyric in the Don McLean song “American Pie,” running in your head? You should. Organic farming — as we know it — could be over. No, I am not an organic farmer, but if I was, I would be very concerned about a new pricing concept being pushed by large-scale… Read More
In this episode of the Corn School, Bernard Tobin and OMAF Corn Lead Greg Stewart turn to a chalkboard to draw up some nitrogen strategies for the 2014 corn crop. Throughout the winter meeting season, Stewart touted a split application approach to nitrogen. He recommends growers put down 100 lb of nitrogen pre-plant and then… Read More
There’s nothing quite like demo plots — where else will you find head to head comparisons of one variety or practice compared against its neighbour? The trouble with plots, though, is that you only usually see them once and then have to wait for data months later to find out what the real difference was… Read More
As the snow retreats (quickly now, get on with you), it’s time to get out there and take a good look at the winter wheat stand. There is such thing as doing a winterkill evaluation too early, but, depending on the method you use, you could need up to two weeks to get a good… Read More