Category: Crop Schools

Blackleg, a fungal disease of canola, is getting away with murder. That's right, murder. This fall, dead, brittle canola plants at swathing or harvest are being attributed, sometimes very wrongly, to sclerotinia infection when, in fact, blackleg is to blame. It's likely been happening for years, Clint Jurke, agronomy specialist with the Canola Council of... Read More

In the first part of our interview with MAFRI Cereal Specialist Pam de Rocquigny we spoke about some of the critical elements involved in seeding winter wheat: 1. What kind of stubble you're going to seed into. 2. How deep you should seed. 3. Weed and volunteer crop control. SEE MORE WHEAT SCHOOL. In this... Read More

One of the things farmers learn very early is that you can't control every variable involved in growing your crop, so you should focus on what you can control. When planting winter wheat, there's no telling what the season will bring, so you focus on making the best choices available to you from the start.... Read More

A successful no-till system starts or stops at the combine. This according to Phil Needham of Needham Ag Technologies. As Phil explains, it's the even spreading of the residue out of the combine that will allow for uniform depth at seeding and uniform emergence as well as other benefits to your crop. SEE MORE WHEAT... Read More

In the last episode of the Wheat School, we spoke with wheat specialist Peter Johnson about some of the problems producers can face when they plant winter wheat early. This time around, Pete offers some advice on how to give that wheat the best possible chance at the point of planting. SEE MORE WHEAT SCHOOL.... Read More

With the early soybean harvest that is about to take place in Ontario, some growers are considering on getting an early jump on the fall planting of winter wheat. HOLD ON!!!!! Peter Johnson, Wheat Specialist, OMAFRA, has some key points for you to remember before you hook up the seeder and start roaring down the... Read More

There are some dismal looking soybean crops throughout parts of Ontario as a result of the extreme summer heat. Late summer rains have provided some relief to those fields but have left producers wondering if it's too little too late. It's not just the heat that's pushed those soybean fields to the brink. The weakened... Read More

There has been a lot of talk about the impact of the drought on the Ontario corn crop, but the fact is that not all of the Ontario crop was hit by the extremely dry conditions. Some areas of Ontario actually received timely rains that, coupled with the high temperatures, will look to give producers... Read More

The stretch from spring seeding to winter wheat planting isn't really that long, but a lot can happen over that period. During the time your equipment sits it's subject to all kinds of weather variations from late spring snowstorms to summer heat waves. Those kind of swings can wreak havoc with your equipment in ways... Read More

Every farmer at some point in their career has to deal with gremlins. From the moment you park your machinery it's a virtual free for all of loosening bolts, fraying belts and poking holes in things. That's why every year at seeding, sure enough, as soon as you take that equipment out to use it,... Read More