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
Tag: Mike Cowbrough
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
The advent of glyphosate resistant weeds has and will continue to complicate pre-plant weed removal. Farmers need to match herbicide resistance management and control options with targeted weed species to ensure not only an effective kill, but also to avoid limiting control options later. Glyphosate-resistant giant ragweed has been confirmed in Ontario, and farmers set… Read More
Canada Fleabane can be the menace of menaces in your soybean crop IF you don’t hammer it down early. The truth is that the weed is so hearty — between its resistant characteristics and its ability to firmly root itself down — if you don’t deal with it while it’s young, you’ve got a problem… Read More
By Mike Cowbrough for FieldCropNews.com It seems to be an annual question. Do I add ammonium sulfate (AMS) to glyphosate? Will it improve weed control especially if my water source is hard? The short answer is no. Skeptical? I understand. There are many areas within the United States that insist the addition of ammonium sulfate… Read More
Two weeks ago we posted a series of videos from six groups of University of Guelph students. The project was for the UofG Crops 4240 undergraduate class. We asked the RealAgriculture.com community to vote on the best weed ID videos from the students. As you see below when you click on show results, Group 6 –… Read More
So much time and effort is put into pushing corn to it’s full potential. We try so hard to manage areas that are partially out of our control that when we see something like herbicide injury in our crop, it can feel a little bit like we shot the puck into our own net. Sometimes… Read More
Trying to time a post emergent herbicide application in non-gmo soybeans requires some careful consideration. Crop stage, weed stage and weed pressure all have to be considered in context in order to make the decision that will be most beneficial to your crop. The toughest aspect of that decision involves waiting for your crop to… Read More
Eliminating weed competition is critical to corn development during it’s initial growth stages. Weed pressure during that growth period can decrease yield significantly depending on the intensity and duration of that pressure. Timing your herbicide application properly can ease back weed pressure while keeping your crop from being damaged. Depending on the herbicide you use,… Read More