Establishing a seeding rate brings with it some rituals. One of those rituals can be observed when a farmer comes to pick up their seed out of a bin. Without fail, the first thing that farmer does is run his into the stream of seed and take a good hard look at it. Seeing is... Read More
Category: Crop Schools
Wheat midge is something that traditionally, farmers in Alberta have not been too concerned about. It was always more of a Saskatchewan issue. Over the past few years however, as we have moved to wetter springs and summers, conditions have changed enough for the pest to become a greater concern. Wheat midge is a pest... Read More
As you dig out the drifts around your seeder and brush the snow off of it, there is a bit of a pre-seed inspection to be done. There is the standard replacement of broken parts that has to be done, but there are also the small bugs and glitches that hold up the process as... Read More
AAAAHHH, COME ON! This is the standard "wake up and look out the window" response these days. "Wet" is the descriptive word of choice around most of the western prairies these days. It's been coming in all forms lately too, rain, snow, sleet, hail, floodwater, you name it. The closer we come to that critical... Read More
For a lot of farmers marketing wheat can be a lot like playing "Let's Make a Deal". You pick what's behind door number one and hope it's better than what's behind doors two and three. It's guesswork and a lot of luck. For other farmers, it feels like you're preparing to write a thesis, with... Read More
It may be a bit of an understatement to say that farmers across the west are eager to get in the field and get seeding. In the south end of Alberta, we've been teased with one day of sun, one day of rain/snow/sleet/cold. Other parts of the west need to dry up, while Peace River... Read More
For businesses involved in the food industry, a consistent, quality ingredient is a necessity. This is especially true for those involved in baked goods. For those businesses, wheat is a very important ingredients. For Warburtons Foods, based in the U.K., Canadian wheat is specifically what they need and want. Those needs include certain characteristics specific... Read More
Markets go up and markets go down. In the last thirty days canola has taken quite a run in multiple directions. Is it overbought, oversold or just right. Ask all of us in November. The trading range of $500 - $600 per tonne seems to be a real opportunity to trade the range but for... Read More
Originally looked upon as "snake oil" seed treatments have become an integral part of the production system. For the most part many farmers originally had trouble understanding the value because the action was underground. Farmers are used to using products like herbicides that kills weeds which is very visual. The action of seed treatments is... Read More
The cereal leaf beetle traditionally has been a minor pest in Canada. Western Canada has begun to see some of the damage as it has moved north from the United States. Scott Meers, Alberta Agriculture states that the cereal leaf beetle has not yet moved above Highway One but should still be a concern for... Read More