As far back as 2001, Fortier, Man., farmer and seed dealer Darcy Miller was growing soybeans. With his agronomic savvy, he saw their potential, and watched through the years as they caught on with other farmers in the province. Now, it’s estimated Manitoba farmers will plant around two million acres of soybeans this year. So... Read More
Category: Crop Production
In a rare, but completely legal move, Ontario's provincial government has removed an elected board of directors and named a trustee to oversee the organization. Late last week, Jeff Leal, minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (OMAFRA) fired the entire Ontario Processing Vegetable Growers (OPVG) board, and appointed Elmer Buchanan, a farmer and former... Read More
Growing farmer interest in planting canola with a planter rather than seeding it with a traditional air drill was evident at Ag Days 2017 in Brandon. The expansion of soybean and corn acres in Western Canada and the Northern Plains is a primary driver, making it easier for canola growers to justify purchasing a planter,... Read More
Taking a break from peas or lentils for six years is a tall order for fields where aphanomyces has been a problem. Are there in-field options or tools for managing this relatively new disease? Syama Chatterton, pulse crops pathologist with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada in Lethbridge, has been conducting field trials across the prairies over... Read More
Oxford dictionary defines "post-truth" as "relating to or denoting circumstances in which objective facts are less influential in shaping public opinion than appeals to emotion and personal belief." We're seeing this term thrown around by the media in the context of recent politics, but these "post-truth" conditions are really nothing new for agriculture. "This has... Read More
John Deere 4-Series sprayers created a huge buzz last month at the 2017 National Farm Machinery Show in Louisville, Kentucky. Much of the noise centered around Deere’s new carbon fibre spray booms, which debuted at the show. But farmers and ag service providers also found another news story in the cab of the John Deere... Read More
Malt barley has become a specialty crop over the years, grown by farmers who specialize in consistently 'making malt'. Scott Keller of New Norway, Alta., and Wade McAllister of Innisfail, Alta. are two of those farmers. After participating in a malt barley panel discussion at FarmTech '17, they dropped by to discuss their not-so-secret formula... Read More
Western Canadian farmers are being asked to participate in a survey analyzing the adoption of precision agriculture tools, as well as the barriers to adoption and innovation, on the prairies. Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada has commissioned Lethbridge-area precision agronomist Dale Steele to lead the study. As he explains in the video below, the results will... Read More
The Ontario Soil and Crop Improvement Association (OSCIA) recently announced a return of the Forage Masters Competition. New and improved, revamping of the competition was lead by Don Oliver, OSCIA director for the east central region. A team effort involving input from not just OSCIA directors, members, staff, but also from the Ontario Ministry of... Read More
To the surprise of possibly few, Peter Johnson has officially been named a nut — a ground nut specialist, in fact. As of right now, Johnson is on his way home from a mission to Zambia, where he was named peanut specialist for the two weeks. What did he learn? If wheat is all about... Read More