With canola being one of the only crops in Western Canada that will enable a profit on the farm this year we need to do our best to protect it. One of the largest threats to canola yields is the cabbage seed pod weevil. The cabbage seed pod weevil mainly affects areas of Alberta and… Read More
It is about time that we saw some black ink in the feeding sector. Whether the rise in live cattle prices is due to hedge fund buying, increasing box beef demand or the terrible weather in the US, we will take the profits anyway that we can get them. The next question is whether this… Read More
For years many farmers just worried about nitrogen and phosphorus but things have changed. As we have discovered more about the way the plant reacts to different nutrients, farmers look to anyway to increase the overall health and yield of the canola plant. There seems to be differing opinions on the need for micro nutrients… Read More
Have you ever had visitors to your farm that wish never came? Some of the worst unwanted visitors to you your farm are bugs in your wheat bin. Farming is very hard work. It takes incredible fortitude, perseverance and a little luck to get the crop in the bin in a timely manner with high… Read More
By Shaun Haney With the advancing average age of the North American farmer we have a critical situation at hand. We need to get more young people in the business of farming. Now I am not talking about getting more young people into the ag-industry. I am talking about getting them on the… Read More
In Western Canada, canola has become the key cash crop. This makes it even more incredibly important to ensure your canola crop has an adequate amount of fertilizer. Managing the nitrogen, phosphorus and sulphur is incredibly integral to achieving the yield objectives you have set on your farm. Many times I hear farmers talk about… Read More
Coming out of the winter months, making sure that your winter wheat has an adequate amount of nitrogen is critical for achieving your yield objectives. Making some nitrogen decision in the spring is critical and cannot be ignored by the grower. Based on where you farm, how you approach the topic will differ. Because of… Read More
One of the first things that you need to do as winter comes to a conclusion is evaluate your winter wheat stand. Depending on the conditions of the past winter, the amount of winter kill can vary and difficult to properly evaluate. If you are too hard on your self you could decide to rip… Read More
Have you ever wondered if the weeds in the field have a greater impact than just taking up nutrients. Is it possible that the weeds in the field have a greater impact on yield than we first thought? Dr. Clarence Swanton, Professor at the University of Guelph has been researching how corn plants and weeds… Read More
At the Syngenta G32 Summit I had the opportunity to interview Dr. Allan Gray from Purdue University. With the increased volatility in the marketplace producers must be much more aware and conscious of the risk dynamics. I have always found that risk is a very difficult topic to discuss because everyone has a different risk profile. What seems risky… Read More
The most attractive and popular booth this year at the London Farm Show was the Syngenta Crop Protection booth. With a booth full of live corn plants under heat lamps, many farmers were drawn to the bright green plants. Nothing gets farmers motivated and excited more than than the opportunity to see a live plant… Read More
Falling number is critical in the milling and baking process. Most farmers hear about the falling number but I am sure that many do not realize what it means. In this episode Russell McLaughlin from Palmerston Grain talks about why falling number is important and why they test for it at the elevator point. See… Read More
Sean Gardner may have the future of the wheat industry in his hands. As the Monsanto Global Wheat Lead, Sean is charged with the task of leveraging Monsanto’s current breeding technologies to bring biotech wheat to the market and to develop a value capture model for wheat. It is no secret that the wheat game… Read More
Globally, the barley crop is in flux. For farmers that grow malt barley and feed barley, 2010 does not look like a great year to be growing and marketing barley. Many growers feel the malt premiums are not high enough and the feeding sector is increasing DDG incorporation. In areas like Southern Alberta silage pits… Read More
The weather in the US in the first two months of the year has led to some higher fat cattle prices. This has initiated a little optimism for the fat cattle board in 2010. What is unclear is whether or not this momentum will continue or die off like the Beta tape. One thing that… Read More