Wet soil, cold nights, weeds, disease, and nitrogen needs are all converging at once – what’s a wheat grower to do? As Ontario’s cold, soggy spring continues, deciding what to do next with the winter wheat crop can be a challenge, especially as the need to plant corn and soybeans becomes more pressing. In this… Read more »
Tag: mike cowbrough
One Stop Shop for Pest Scouting Help
Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs weed specialist Mike Cowbrough used to carry five or six scouting and management guides when he headed out to scout fields. Those days are gone. Now he just reaches into his pocket, pulls out his smart phone and opens his Pest Manager App. The Pest Manager app,… Read more »
Wheat School – Making The Right Choice for Fall Weed Control
In a perfect world, winter wheat growers would apply a pre-plant weed control application to tackle winter annual and perennial weeds. But it doesn’t always work out that way. In this episode of Real Agriculture’s Wheat School, OMAFRA weed management specialist Mike Cowbrough takes a look at weed control options for producers who didn’t have… Read more »
Controlling Poisonous Tansy Ragwort Keeps Livestock Safe
If tansy ragwort is gaining a foothold in your pasture fields, it’s time to take action. The poisonous yellow-flowered plant has taken root in pastures and hayfields across North America and its liver-damaging alkaloids can kill livestock, explains Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs weed specialist Mike Cowbrough. In this video, Cowbrough offers tips… Read more »
Wiping Out Wild Parsnip
Parsnip is great in soups or part of a roasted vegetable medley, but if you see it growing in a ditch it’s best to steer clear. Those volunteer plants are likely wild parsnip and they’re poisonous to the touch, explains Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs weed specialist Mike Cowbrough. The poisonous weed… Read more »
Wheat Pete’s Word, March 31: Weird Wheat, Slugs and Shotgun Blasts
In this week’s Word, Peter Johnson, resident agronomist for RealAgriculture, examines everything from erosion and weird wheat to cover crop management and insect pests. Have a question for Wheat Pete? Call 1-844-540-2014, send him a tweet (@wheatpete), or email him at [email protected] Highlights: There are huge amounts of erosion in high tillage zones in Ontario. “We simply have to… Read more »
AgNerds: Ever-Evolving Tech, Apps and Expectations
It’s hard to believe that a mere century ago, Canada was still in the process of installing phonelines. In fact, in February of 1916, Montreal and Vancouver were connected by telephone for the first time ever, a feat that took over 6700km of circuit. The first flip phone appeared 80 years later, followed closely by the first “smart… Read more »
Stopping H5N2: Biosecurity Tips for Non-Poultry Producers
You may not be a poultry producer in Ontario, but you still play a role in decreasing the risk of spreading avian influenza within the province. So far confirmed on two farms and suspected on a third in Oxford County, the highly pathogenic H5N2 avian influenza is incredibly deadly to birds and very easy to… Read more »
When Weeds Won’t Die — Ep. 4: How Well Do you Know Your Weeds?
How good is your weed identification? If you had to answer if a weed was a “late flushing” weed or a winter annual, could you answer? While no weed specialist expects every farmer to be a weed expert, knowing a few specific details about your enemy is actually quite helpful in the war on resistance…. Read more »
Soybean School: Getting Tough on Tufted Vetch in Soybeans
OMAFRA Weed Management Lead Mike Cowbrough has been getting lots of calls from growers this year looking for tips on how to control tufted vetch in soybeans. The perennial legume is tough to control in an annual legume crop like soybeans, and there’s virtually no way to control it once the crop is out of… Read more »
Soybean School: Tips for Burndown Crunch-Time
OK, you missed your window for that all important pre-seed burn. Things may have been a little soggy, you may have been a little busy…whatever the reason. The good news is you’ve still got a shot to get those beans poking up in a clean environment. It’s crunch-time though, so in this episode of the… Read more »
Watch Out for Soybean IP Premium Killer — Eastern Black Nightshade
IP soybeans growers need to take a close look to see if eastern black nightshade is gaining a foothold in their fields. The premium killer is often confused with pigweed seedlings and growers think they have plenty of time and spray options to gain control, says Ontario Ministry of Agriculture and Food weed control specialist… Read more »
Don’t Let 4 Weeks of Weed Growth Lead to 4 Years (or More!) of Weed Problems
Farmers do a great job of in-crop weed control, which is great, seeing as weeds competing with the crop for nutrients and sunlight steal from yield. That said, a recent survey suggests that farmers are missing a key window of time for weed control — the four-week window after winter wheat harvest — that could… Read more »
Ontario Agronomy Geeks, Ep. 2 — Have Another Pint, Gredig
Its time for episode two of the Ontario Agronomy Geeks. This weeks guests are St. Thomas farmer Peter Gredig and University of Guelph Professor and OMAFRA Weed Specialist Mike Cowbrough. The panel joins Shaun Haney to discuss corn harvest progress, corn hybrid selection, potential acre increase for IP soybeans in 2014, does lower prices mean… Read more »
Vote Now for Your Favourite Weed ID Video!
It’s that time of year again, when a student’s thoughts turn to looking fashionable while still staying warm (hahahahaha, as if) and, more importantly, the students from the University of Guelph’s Crop 4240 class launch their weed identification and control videos. This is the second year that instructor Francois Tardif and lab lead Mike Cowbrough… Read more »