In a move that's sure to make manufacturers of organic pesticides very happy, the Manitoba government has announced its plan to introduce legislation that will ban the use of non-organic pesticides for lawns and common areas of the province. Citing health concerns for pets and children, the government plans to begin to ban the sale... Read More
Category: Agronomy
Fusarium head blight, or tombstone blight, is slowly moving west, and growers in regions not traditionally accustomed to fusarium are beginning to see premature bleaching/blighting of wheat heads and shriveled seeds caused by the pathogen. Fusarium doesn't just affect the grade and yield of a wheat field, it may also contaminate wheat kernels with mycotoxins... Read More
There are times when high quality high just isn't in the cards. In fact, sometimes the weather makes even attaining low quality hay nearly impossible. It's times like these that some farmers choose to turn too-wet hay into silage or haylage. The downside there, however, is that quality has already been lost — had you... Read More
Bigger or faster? It's a question that pops up from time to time when it comes to farm equipment (like, always). Our recent discussion with Dr. Tom Wolf brought up the issue with regard to spraying, but what about planting? Not everyone has a piece of land that an ultra-wide seeder or planter will work... Read More
Damage from soybean cyst nematode can be minor, but once this pest is established in a field, it's there for good. Since being confirmed in Ontario about 15 years ago, the nematode moved throughout much of the soybean growing region. Knowing the nematode pressure level in your fields is essential to minimizing damage through the... Read More
The Morris slogan is "We hear you" and with the recently unveiled Morris Razr disc drill and the new 9 series Air Carts, it's clear they do. RealAgriculture's Debra Murphy was on the grounds before Canada's Farm Progress Show to see the new equipment. In this video, Garth Massie, corporate agronomist for Morris Industries, describes... Read More
The University of Guelph is on the hunt for a new winter wheat breeder following a major announcement this week. Grain Farmers of Ontario, SeCan and the university have partnered to create a new tenure-track position to focus on the crop, Ontario's third largest acreage crop after corn and soy. In this interview, Bern Tobin,... Read More
Rust in cereals, and especially stripe rust, is a disease that it can be easy to allow to drop off the radar. After all, the spores are carried by wind and may not reach your growing region in time to really cause an issue. What's more, decent varietal resistance exists for many races of rust,... Read More
This spring I listened in on the Saskatchewan Ministry of Agriculture’s Alfalfa Weevil Webinar. I assume I’m not the only farmer out there who had little knowledge of the alfalfa weevil before the webinar, let alone any idea of how much of a problem it is becoming. Let’s just say that if you have yet... Read More
To say that big machinery gets noticed at a farm show is understating that fact just a little. It seems each company is trying to out-do each other every year. While it may not have been their intention, the SprayFlex sprayer dwarfed just about every other piece of equipment at Canada's Farm Progress Show. With... Read More