Category: Crop Schools

On most years seeding earlier provides opportunities for large reward in terms of yield. Now that many farmers are racing against the calendar to try and get seeded as soon as they can, there are some considerations being made. One of the main questions that many farmers are dealing with is whether they should seed... Read More

Mother nature is really proving that she does not have a sense of humour. We have drought in Peace River, very wet conditions in Saskatchewan and flooding in Manitoba. The weather adversity impacting canola growers across the west is extremely serious and could have significant implications for the total production in 2011. For the farmers... Read More

With the wet weather across the prairies getting all the media attention, you would assume that most farmers would be dealing with pests that come with an over abundance of moisture. With the majority of the west being wet except for the Peace, pests that love moisture will become a real problem. The interesting thing... Read More

The "big picture" is very important when it comes to evaluating plant stands, especially in winter wheat. The first place a farmer will naturally be drawn to is the visually accessible poor spots in the field. Those areas should be looked at, but always in the broader context of the entire field. If they aren't,... Read More

Farmers looking to kickstart their winter wheat crop are very careful in timing their nitrogen application. Applying nitrogen at the wrong stage in plant development can lead to yield loss down the line. That being said, farmers have to take into consideration the difference in conditions this year vs last year. Whereas last years conditions... Read More

When the conditions are right, flea beetles move quickly and devastate quickly. The bugs are the most chronically damaging insect pest of canola in Western Canada. They inflict the most damage on canola at the seedling stage, inhibiting proper plant growth and delaying maturity. They will feed on more mature plants, but canola at later... Read More

In some areas of the country, whether on time or late, farmers will have to deal with seeding into cool, wet soil conditions. As we approach the 1st of May, farmers who haven't seeded yet may be looking at planting canola in less than ideal conditions just to get the crop in the ground. The... Read More

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

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