Verticillium stripe — a disease first discovered in Western Canada in 2014 — appears to be taking advantage of the stress to canola plants caused by an old, familiar disease pathogen. While research to understand Verticillium longisporum in the Prairies is still in its early stages, there’s a hypothesis that its prevalence in a canola… Read More
Category: Western Canada
Minimizing erosion, better crop inputs management and higher corn yields is what Port Rowan, Ont., farmer Dan Petker was looking for when he adopted strip tillage five years ago. Farming with his family on the shores of Lake Erie, Petker turned to strip till — the process of minimizing tillage by cultivating eight-inch wide strips… Read More
There are still plenty of unknowns surrounding the highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) outbreak that has killed millions of chickens and turkeys on farms across North America going back to early 2022, but a drop in the number of new cases in the month of May is a positive sign for the poultry sector. The… Read More
As the lentil crop begins to emerge, there are many lessons to learn from walking fields early and assessing stand establishment. How does this stand look? Was emergence even? What could be done different next year? These are just some of the many questions that likely need asked every season. Ken Wall of Federated Co-operatives… Read More
While the Competition Bureau won’t speculate or comment on a hypothetical transaction, such as the purchase of grain company Viterra by grain giant Bunge, it’s hard to imagine a scenario where the Bureau would not eventually be involved in ruling on the deal. Under the Competition Act, transactions of all sizes are subject to review… Read More
The growing season is busy. From before the crop goes into the ground, to after it’s harvested, there are a million different things on the go. Although skipping any steps is frowned upon, one step that should never be skipped is a proper sprayer tank clean out, says Shawn Senko of the Canola Council of… Read More
A bag of seed corn checks in at 80,000 kernels and typically weighs between 35 and 65 pounds. One bag will plant roughly 2.5 acres. But the job of producing that seed is very different than growing a commercial corn crop. On this episode of RealAgriculture’s Corn School, we kick off a three-part series on… Read More
A new report commissioned by the Saskatchewan Stock Growers Association (SSGA) and the Saskatchewan Stock Growers Foundation (SSGF) looks at the differences in profitability between cow-calf and annual crop production in southwest Saskatchewan. Over a 50 year time period, the returns from grain farming are $508/acre higher than cow-calf production, according to the research modelling… Read More
The current commodity markets are a key economic indicator, and as many are well aware, in the commodity world the key indicator is crude oil. Where crude goes, so does the rest of the commodities, says Errol Anderson, president of ProMarket Communications Inc., based at Calgary, Alta. As things look according to Anderson, there’s a… Read More
How farmers grow crops and manage livestock is forever changing. That evolution of agriculture is also reshaping how agribusinesses operate, as companies compete for talent and aim to create a workplace to best support their business, products, and farmer customers. Last week, Syngenta Canada opened the doors to its newly-renovated office at Guelph, Ont., to… Read More
When scouting for blackleg, many imagine clipping stems near swathing or harvest time. But did you know that infection actually occurs at the very beginning of the growing season? If you’re in a high risk situation, such as a tight rotation, growing the same variety, or have background resistance in the field, the disease can… Read More
Workers with agriculture experience will receive priority as part of a new category-based selection process for Canada’s flagship economic immigration system. Sean Fraser, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, on Wednesday announced the launch of category-based selection and priority categories for the Express Entry system in 2023. As part of the program, invitations can be… Read More
Along the lines of think before you drink and call before you dig, farmers should be scouting before they… tear out old fence lines and shelterbelts or fill in potholes. OK, we’ll admit the tagline needs work, but current Prairie ecosystems don’t always have huge areas to host biodiversity, and even small pockets of brush,… Read More
The international agricultural landscape is witnessing a troubling trend towards protectionism. In past eras, protectionism was enabled through prohibitive tariffs that blocked trade. World Trade Organization (WTO) negotiations and bilateral trade agreements have largely eliminated tariffs from the protectionists’ toolbox, but, as evidenced by recent events, there are other ways in which trade can be… Read More
One of the busiest people in agriculture may be Senator Rob Black. The Ontario senator seems to be everywhere these days talking to everyone on a host of issues. Earlier this month, Black’s sponsored bill to establish Food Day in Canada received unanimous support at third reading in the House of Commons. The first official… Read More