It's been a tough spring for planting corn in Ontario. Planting season started in late April and some growers are now just getting their last acres in the ground during the final days of June. That seven-week planting season will present challenges for growers as they try to assess yield potential and apply fungicides to... Read More
Category: Crop Schools
Grasshoppers, both pest species and not, thrive in dry conditions. When back to back (to back) years end up in a dry cycle, grasshopper populations can explode and wipe out a crop. One year of higher moisture isn't likely to undue that lifecycle bump, so farmers in Saskatchewan and Alberta need to stay vigilant on... Read More
After years of dry to extremely dry conditions in the pulse growing regions of Saskatchewan, it's unlikely anyone is going to complain about a wet spring. The shift from dry to more average or even wet conditions creates some fantastic yield potential for growers, but it also creates a perfect environment for root rots, including... Read More
Soil testing is a best management practice when planning fertilizer rates, but a soil test is perhaps most valuable following extreme situations — very wet or drought conditions. As Mike Palmier of Max Ag Consulting explains in this Canola School episode below, three years of dry or drought conditions for his area of west-central Saskatchewan... Read More
It's late June and growers are still planting soybeans in Ontario. It's been that kind of year, says Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Agribusiness soybean specialist Horst Bohner as growers in rain-soaked areas of the province make a final dash to plant soybean acres. On this episode of the RealAgriculture Soybean School, Bohner looks... Read More
Once peas have emerged and get growing, it's time to scout for pea leaf weevil feeding. Feeding by adult pea leaf weevils creates notches on the clam shell leaves, but it's the damage done by larvae feeding on the roots that causes economic losses in pea crops. Pea leaf weevil is not an issue in... Read More
As cereal crops race to the finish line across Ontario, many growers are weighing the option of planting soybeans after a first harvest, which is already underway in some winter barley fields in southwestern portions of the province. Embro, Ont., farmer Ian Matheson and his family have been double cropping soybeans for two decades. He... Read More
As the calendar turns to the back half of June in Ontario, growers typically sharpen their focus on nitrogen management as the crop pushes into its rapid growth phases. But what's happening in the field in mid June 2024 is really dependent on where in the province you farm and whether you've been able to... Read More
Each pulse species requires certain bacteria, usually a rhizobium inoculant, in order for plants to fix their own nitrogen. Once nodules form on the plant roots, those little factories can provide much of the crop's N needs, but there are several decisions farmers have to make at seeding to ensure excellent nodulation, and there are... Read More
Winter wheat may be the fastest growing crop in Maritime Canada. Over the past five years, the cereal crop has seen significant growth with total acreage on Prince Edward Island alone climbing near 25,000 acres. On this episode of RealAgriculture Wheat School, host Bernard Tobin travels to the Island to find out what's driving interest... Read More