Last week the new Progressive Conservative government in Manitoba changed the name of its agriculture ministry back to the Department of Agriculture. Previously it was the Department of Agriculture, Food and Rural Development, or MAFRD.  Many people on twitter were cheerleading the decision as if this was agriculture finding its roots with the name change. Some said they found… Read More

Bring back the old letterhead and golf shirts. Manitoba’s new government has changed the name of its agriculture department back to what it was prior to 1999. An Order-in-Council passed on Tuesday, the day Brian Pallister’s government and cabinet were sworn in, changed the “Department of Agriculture, Food and Rural Development” to simply “Department of… Read More

If there was some way of measuring trending topics in farmer conversations in Western Canada over the past six months, “so, are you growing peas this year?” would be at or near the top. Thanks to the very strong prices that are accompanying a global pulse shortage, a record number of pea (and lentil) acres… Read More

Editor’s note: The Canadian verticillium stakeholders committee has decided to call the disease caused by Verticillium longisporum “verticillium stripe” instead of “verticillium wilt.” This story has been updated to reflect the new terminology. The canola industry is in the early stages of understanding what it’s up against with a new fungal disease. Verticillium stripe (previously… Read More

Stripe rust was reported in early spring in Alberta, likely having over-wintered in the southern part of the province, and now there are reports in Manitoba of the fungus arriving on winds from the U.S. In this Wheat School episode, Holly Derksen, plant pathologist with Manitoba Agriculture, Food and Rural Development, describes how stripe rust inoculum moves north from the… Read More

So you’re thinking of switching to a wider row spacing for next year’s soybeans. Have you taken your hula hoop around this year’s crop first? Though there isn’t necessarily an “ideal” row spacing suggested for western Canadian soybean growers, the importance of knowing a target plant population and assessing stand establishment is still essential. Related: Soybean… Read More

Up until now, the Manitoba government has remained mum on the whereabouts of three canola fields that showed signs of clubroot infection in 2013. Farmers and agronomists had asked for more information regarding positive pathogen finds in order to better fine-tune best management avoidance practices. Today, Manitoba Agriculture Food and Rural Development released a map showing… Read More

Soybean growers in Manitoba are — so far — rather lucky. While there are diseases in the province that infect soybeans, like downy mildew, white mold (sclerotinia) and brown spot, overall pressure is relatively low. That will change over time, however, as Vikram Bisht, plant pathologist with Manitoba Agriculture, Food and Rural Development, points out,… Read More

 

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