Dan Foster has seen a lot of agronomic head scratchers in his career, but he witnessed a first in a cornfield near Sarnia, Ontario this spring. On this episode of Real Agriculture Corn School, Foster, Pride Seeds market development agronomist based at Chatham, takes you to a field with rootless corn syndrome. Foster describes how... Read More
Category: Crop Production
It’s been a rugged start for Ontario’s soybean crop. With cool, wet growing conditions, late planting, insect feeding and soil crusting, many growers find themselves squarely behind the eight ball. According to OMAFRA soybean specialist Horst Bohner, most soybeans have been planted but some growers are still struggling to get seed in the ground. What... Read More
Hemp is often seen as a new crop, and in retrospect, it still is. Only allowed to be grown in Canada since 1998, there haven't been the decades of research and experience with hemp as with other crops. Jan Slaski, senior researcher with Alberta Innovates - Technology Futures, based in Vegreville Alberta, says that southern... Read More
Higher water volumes are always best when spraying crops. Right? Actually, that’s a myth. In this episode of Spray Tips Special Edition we find our Sprayers101.com dynamic duo – Tom Wolf of AgriMetrix, and Jason Deveau of the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs – enjoying a well-deserved coffee break. Enjoying their java,... Read More
Take control back at harvest. Despite being new to straight cutting, Mark and Matt Ferguson have already seen a lot of progress. After trying the practice with a shatter-resistant variety on a small number of acres, they gained the confidence to expand to a larger number of acres. Find out how the Ferguson’s use straight... Read More
Aster yellows is a 'phytoplasma' disease carried by aster leafhoppers. It's known for the odd-shaped canola pods it causes later in the growing season. Problems with aster yellows are hit and miss, depending on your area and the year. "We are kind of waiting for the next leafhopper infestation with aster yellows, the next big... Read More
Ontario’s cool, wet spring not only delayed planting, but also put the brakes on nitrogen mineralization, limiting the nutrient’s availability to the growing corn crop. According to OMAFRA pre-sidedress nitrate testing (PSNT) survey results released this week, corn growers are looking at the lowest rates of available nitrogen since the survey began in 2013. In... Read More
From cold and wet, transitioning into too hot and dry, all in just one week in Ontario. How is that possible? RealAg agronomist Peter Johnson is just as baffled when it comes to the weather, as he discusses on this week's Word. Peter covers the latest in wheat, soybeans, corn, edible beans, forage management, and... Read More
Nearly five years after it was approved in Canada, Dow AgroSciences says Enlist corn will be available in Canada and the U.S. for the 2018 growing season. The launch comes after China's Ministry of Agriculture gave its long-awaited approval to imports of corn containing the Enlist trait this week. The Enlist system combines tolerance to... Read More
A "biopesticide" is defined as a living organism that's capable of controlling a pest, including weeds. Dr. Susan Boyetchko, research scientist with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada in Saskatoon, specializes in biopesticide technology, and she's been working on a program to develop bio-based tools for controlling grassy weeds, such as wild oats and green foxtail. As... Read More