Category: Crop Schools

Overall the wheat harvest in Ontario has gone well. Some areas have experienced lower than ideal yields but the quality has been very good. With corn and soybeans showing strength the concern or opportunity for Ontario wheat growers is quite interesting. What impact will one million wheat acres have on price? Will the high levels... Read More

Much has been said about the potential benefits of straight cutting canola. In particular with regards to yield and overall quality, straight cutting has been shown to provide some benefit. There are however some qualifiers attached to those benefits that have to work to avoid a wreck. It would be a disaster to lose your... Read More

I have been around canola fields my entire life and when you factor in all of the growing challenges and key points, the most misunderstood is the decision of "when should I swath?" I get more calls to our office during this time of the growing season than any other. Swath timing is incredibly difficult... Read More

Demand for canola from crushers has remained strong throughout the summer months, stocks are tight and exports are good. That being said, harvest is just around the corner and a number of questions will be answered regarding actual acres and yield potential. Everyone is aware of the disastourous year that Western Manitoba and Easter Saskatchewan... Read More

With the Western Canadian winter wheat harvest about to begin, extra attention needs to be paid to harvest timing. When to swath, when to straight cut and when to combine are integral decisions to your profitability. The biggest threat to your harvest tends to be the weather. Wet weather can greatly impact quality if you... Read More

Getting your winter wheat off the field as quickly as possible is extremely important if you are looking to maintain quality. The longer that crop remains in the field exposed to the elements, the greater the chances are that germ, vigour and overall grade quality can be negatively impacted. That's were combine efficiency comes into... Read More

Looks can be deceiving when you're trying to figure out when your canola field is ready to be harvested. This year especially, varied staging in fields is a real issue. According to Jim Bessel, Senior Agronomy Specialist with the Canola Council of Canada, that varied staging will make harvest decisions a real "mindbender". Bessel says... Read More

For a lot of farmers across the west, figuring out when to swath their canola fields may be as stressful as trying to get it in the ground was. The overabundance of moisture and the cool temperatures that producers had to deal with at the beginning of the season have caused varied staging in areas... Read More

As commodity prices continue to rise, efficiency at harvest becomes increasingly important. Producers want to minimize loss in every area possible. Harvest is one area farmers can take control of when it comes to increasing efficiency. Depending on how the combine is adjusted and the crop type, some farmers can lose up to 5 bushels... Read More

  Test weights on wheat are down below average in parts of Ontario. Compared to this time last year, yields by test weight alone are down by as much as 10% in areas. There are a couple of reasons behind this. The first involves under-filled kernels from plants surrounding dead zones in the field being... Read More