I’ve lived on the Prairies all my life — so it’s not new to me to experience a good winter storm. However, the blizzard that hit us this past weekend made it feel like the type of storm you typically see around here on New Years Day. Parts of central and southern Alberta and Saskatchewan… Read More
Planting early isn’t just the mantra for wheat in the fall, it usually applies to corn in the spring, too. But as farmers submit data on final yields vs planting date, the full story of planting into cold or cold, wet soils is told. In this week’s Wheat Pete’s Word, host Peter Johnson shares some… Read More
It’s time for Day 8, our final episode of the virtual Ontario Diagnostic Days! To wrap up the series, RealAgriculture LIVE! host Shaun Haney is joined by Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (OMAFRA) plant pathologist Albert Tenuta, and University of Guelph associate professor Dave Hooker. During the broadcast, Tenuta looks back at… Read More
The better the job done at planting the better the yield potential of a corn crop. That much we know, but when planting into less-than-ideal conditions, like the spring of 2020, environmental factors can really wreak havoc on your end yield potential. Luckily, paying attention to seed singulation at planting time can help. “There’s no… Read More
As many soybean growers are well aware, soybeans have a unique ability to biologically fix their own nitrogen (N) in a symbiotic relationship with the bacteria, Bradyrhizobium japonicum. Inoculant containing the bacteria can either be applied on the seed or to the soil at planing, and then as the crop is putting on vegetation and… Read More
When there’s good wheat in abundance, those loads with sub-250 falling number are going to get dinged — and so begins some of the tougher lessons of this harvest season, says Peter “Wheat Pete” Johnson. On this week’s Wheat Pete’s Word, you’ll get a harvest season update, more on the cover crop survey for Ontario,… Read More
Corn fields across Ontario are full of variable plant development and that should be a concern for growers, says University of Guelph crop researcher Dr. David Hooker. Fields are littered with areas of yield-compromising backward and slow-to-develop plants. Hooker believes corn variability is even more apparent this year due to significant weather challenges; with cold… Read More
If you remember farming in 1988, this year may seem a little similar, at least for Ontario. That year, the drought broke in mid-July with a torrential downpour — are we in for something like that soon? Well, we won’t know for sure for a few days yet, but this week’s Wheat Pete’s Word does… Read More
July has hit Ontario hot and dry; a continuation of the dry bias, but a welcome change from the unseasonably cool start to the season. While corn and soybean fields aren’t as negatively impacted by dry weather this early in the season, much of the wheat crop and spring cereals are either filling or about… Read More
2020 has already been a challenging year, and we’re only just now approaching July. While there are plenty of reasons to be down about the year, many areas of Alberta that have endured three years of drought had finally been gifted good moisture, plenty of timely rain, and good heat. Unfortunately, another part of farming… Read More
Do you remember 1966? You can be forgiven if you don’t, but Drew Lerner, weather guru with World Weather Inc., says the first half of 2020 is shaping up to be very similar to that year. What does that mean for crop growing weather, hail, rainfall amounts, and more? Listen/watch below to this Tuesday, June… Read More
Mother Nature is perhaps not always that motherly, but every now and again she does throw us a bone. This last week in Ontario was pretty good on the average, with some timely rains in some areas and some first-cut haylage wrapping up. But the timely rain has also brought along some storms, and heat,… Read More
Crop researchers and agronomists are encouraging Ontario farmers to continue to follow established stewardship recommendations when using dicamba herbicides. Last week, a U.S. court decision to cancel the registration of in-crop use of dicamba herbicides left regulators, product manufacturers, herbicide applicators and farmers scrambling to understand the ramifications of the ruling and the implications for… Read More
With June arriving this week, corn is rushing ahead and growing rapidly. Now’s the time for growers to get out and scout fields to identify planting issues, determine yield potential and start fine-tuning your management plan, says Kinburn, Ont., agronomist Paul Sullivan. On this episode of RealAgriculture’s Corn School, Sullivan notes that stand assessment and… Read More
Should you plant soybeans shallow to get them out of the ground quickly, or plant deeper into more stable soil temperatures? The correct answer is likely somewhere in the middle says Horst Bohner, Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, soybean specialist. He’s monitoring a series of planting date and seeding depth trials at… Read More
Register for a RealAgriculture account to manage your Shortcut menu instead of the default.