What happens in your fields during the growing season plays a critical role in determining the numbers that pop up on the combine yield monitor at harvest. One way to better understand those final yields and improve future management decisions is to utilize digital agronomy tools that are now widely available to both growers and… Read More
Tag: Dale Cowan
In 2019, many Ontario soybean fields showed signs of severe manganese deficiency. Many of the problem areas were a direct result of growing conditions that featured both soil temperature and moisture extremes, says AGRIS Co-operative agronomist Dale Cowan, who notes that many soils in southwestern Ontario tend to be naturally low in manganese. Any time… Read More
August rains make soybeans — it’s more than just a cliche, it’s a crop management fact that rings true whenever timely moisture finds soybean fields during a pivotal growing month for the oilseed crop. On the episode of the RealAgriculture Soybean School, AGRIS Co-operative senior agronomist Dale Cowan tells us why and how August rains… Read More
For today’s RealAg Radio show, it’s a true Agronomic Monday! Host Shaun Haney has the following guests: RealAgriculture’s Bern Tobin speaks with Dale Cowan, senior agronomist, and sales manager with AGRIS and Wanstead Cooperatives about soybean planting in the very wet southern Ontario; and, Peter ‘Wheat Pete’ Johnson addresses the very wet weather in Southern… Read More
As May 15 approaches and the rain continues to fall across Ontario, growers need to start thinking about whether they should be dialling back their chosen soybean maturity range. Research shows growing a longer-season variety can put an additional four to five bushels in the bin if they’re planted by mid-May, says AGRIS Co-operative agronomist… Read More
Will strip tillage find a home in Ontario soybean fields? AGRIS Co-operative agronomist Dale Cowan certainly believes there’s a fit. Last June on RealAgriculture Soybean School we visited Cowan in a field of strip tilled soybeans near Mount Brydges, Ont., where Cowan’s brother, Larry and Larry’s son, Chris, of Chimo Farms, had created an integrated strip till program… Read More
Strip tillage in corn is growing in popularity in Ontario, but we don’t often see the tillage strategy employed in soybeans. On this episode of RealAgriculture’s Soybean School, AGRIS Co-operative agronomist Dale Cowan takes us to a strip-tilled field, which features twin row, 7.5-inch soybeans planted on 30-inch centres. In the field, Cowan’s bother, Larry… Read More
Is the clock ticking on the future of your ground sprayer? Could it eventually be replaced by a swarm of UAV sprayers that could better target weeds and deliver herbicide to exact locations in the field? These are questions we explore with AGRIS Co-operative agronomist Dale Cowan on this episode of RealAgriculture’s Corn School. Cowan recently… Read More
When should you consider switching corn and plant a shorter-season hybrid? That’s a question many growers in some southwestern regions of Ontario are wrestling with as the calendar pushes ever closer to June. Spring weather conditions in many areas of the province have been good and planting is proceeding at a strong pace. However, heavy… Read More
Ontario ag retailers need to provide leadership in helping farmers adopt 4R nutrient stewardship and a new audit program can do just that, says AGRIS Co-operative agronomist Dale Cowan. In 2015, OMAFRA, the Ontario Agri Business Association, Fertilizer Canada, and ag retailer stakeholders signed a memorandum of understanding stating that 4R nutrient stewardship – right source,… Read More