It’s mid-April and a huge part of Western Canada, Ontario, and the northern U.S. is digging out after a late winter blast of snow, freezing rain, and ice. As May looms large in the next 14 days, we have to ask — when should we start to panic about a late planting season? May 1st… Read more »
Tag: Peter Johnson
Wheat School: Solve your tiller problem with N, not seeding rate
Wheat tillers are nothing but a well-camouflaged weed, right? Not exactly. While excessive tillering can cause grief for fungicide timing and harvest management, one tiller can actually pull its own weight and contribute to yield. How do you best manage for one or two tillers? Say it with us now: nitrogen! If you wanted to… Read more »
The secret to reducing your corn nitrogen bill by 75 pounds an acre
Want to apply 75 fewer pounds per acre on corn ground next year, and possibly achieve a higher yield? Peter Johnson, agronomist for RealAgriculture, has the answer: apply red clover to the wheat crop now. Wait, you say, you tricked me! This isn’t a secret at all. And you’re right: frost seeding red clover in… Read more »
What it takes to grow record-setting wheat
Can we grow world-record-breaking wheat here in Ontario? The answer from most will be a resounding NO!, but don’t give in so quickly. The world record set by Eric Watson of New Zealand stands at 249.7 bu/ac. In 2016, a well-calibrated yield monitor in Ontario touched 240 bu/ac in the best area of a great… Read more »
Wheat School: When does your crop need spring nitrogen?
It’s late March and it’s cool in Ontario. Are you thinking about applying nitrogen to your winter wheat crop? If so, don’t mention it to RealAgriculture resident agronomist Peter Johnson – he may have a conniption. After he stops shaking, WheatPete will tell you that there is no benefit to putting nitrogen on wheat until… Read more »
Wheat School: Boosting protein with dissolved urea
The price of wheat is down, yes, but there are premiums for protein, and RealAgriculture agronomist Peter Johnson thinks there’s an opportunity to cash in. In this episode of the Wheat School, Johnson looks at new nitrogen research from University of Manitoba researcher Amy Mangin. It provides evidence of how growers can pump up their protein… Read more »
Wheat Pete’s Word, Jan 31: Planter pressure, cover crop queries, and cold, dry weather
Let’s get down to the nitty gritty on this week’s top agronomy questions, shall we? Peter Johnson is back for this last January 2018 instalment of Wheat Pete’s Word, and it’s an action-packed episode. Out west, farmers have two main concerns — lack of moisture and lack of moisture. This brings up two questions in this… Read more »
Top 3 reasons to spread manure on snow
Depending on where you live, fields have likely been frozen now for quite some time. Maybe they’re even snow covered. Now is a great time to spread manure because that firm ground means you can travel and not create compaction, the storage is full, and, well, it’ll work its way into the soil later…right? Well,… Read more »
RealAg Radio, Jan 29: Boosting yield through kernel size, winter crop killers, and an interview with Farmer Tim
We’re celebrating the fifth Monday of January in style with this week’s edition of the RealAg Radio agronomy show. Your host Shaun Haney is joined by none other than RealAgriculture’s agronomist and general wheat enthusiast Peter Johnson to tackle your biggest agronomy questions, such as if winter crops have died all their deaths yet. They… Read more »
Extreme cold offers some silver linings
If you’ve happened to go outside in much of Canada the last couple of weeks, you’ll be well aware of the bone-chilling cold that gripped parts of the country over the holidays. For some, the cold halted plans, while others merely took more time to don more layers, or scheduled an urgent meeting with their… Read more »
Corn School: Ontario heading for a record 180+ bu/ac crop
180 bushels per acre. It looks like Ontario’s 2017 corn crop is going to come in above that number and set a new record for the province. In this episode of RealAgriculture Corn School, Peter Johnson and Bernard Tobin dive into the numbers and try to figure out where all that grain came from in… Read more »
Real Dream Workshops: Making hydro with Otto Bloemen
Are you planning to build a new farm workshop? How will you power and heat it? Do you want a crane? In episode 3 of Real Dream Workshops, Peter Johnson visits his neighbour Otto Bloemen at Lucan, Ontario-based OJB Industries. Bloeman tells Johnson how he set out to build a cost-effective wood-frame building with high insulation… Read more »
Wheat Pete’s Word, Nov 15: Pirates, pigs in puddles and pounding the pulpit
In this episode of The Word, host Peter Johnson takes us through huge harvest highlights, corn caramelization, dormant seeding, piracy and specific questions all the way from tile runs to (of course) everything wheat. Also, today’s episode is brought to you by the letter P. Have a question you’d like Johnson to address? Or some… Read more »
Corn School: How long does it take to add 1 percent soil organic matter?
You’ve just finished combining a corn field and you want to know how much organic matter all that corn residue will contribute to your soil. RealAgriculture’s agronomist Peter Johnson tackles that question on our latest Corn School episode. Unfortunately, as Johnson explains, all those stalks and cobs won’t have much of an impact. When it… Read more »
Wheat School: The key to planting in dry soils
Whatever you do, get out there and plant your wheat. That’s the message agronomist Peter Johnson has for Ontario wheat growers in this episode of the Wheat School. “Either plant into moisture or plant in dust,” says Johnson, who notes that many growers across the province are hesitant to plant because of widespread dry soil conditions…. Read more »