Are you flying blind when it comes to starting your crop? An untested seed lot is exactly that, untested — you don't know what diseases may be lurking in the bin that could contribute to pathogen load in the field or choke off seedlings before they get a chance to grow. What's more, variable seed... Read More
Category: Crop Production
While soybean breeders have focused on boosting top-end yield, they've also made the crop more resilient in situations with thin plant stands. Speaking at the CropConnect Conference in Winnipeg last month, Shaun Conley of the University of Wisconsin discussed the "phenotypic plasticity" of soybeans, or the crop's ability to compensate for lower plant populations. "It's... Read More
The National Bee Health Roundtable (BHRT) recently held its third workshop in Ottawa. The roundtable, a coalition of stakeholders with a direct interest in the health of bees, reports making clear progress over the last year evidenced by the release of the National Bee Health Action Plan. “The collaborative approach of the roundtable, which brings... Read More
Tapping into a new food or food ingredient market takes years of research, market development and buy-in of an entire value chain. It helps, of course, if there’s a ready market for the product, and you’ve got land that needs a new cropping option. That’s the current situation with hazelnuts in Ontario — work into... Read More
Farmers who bought a new planter with a dust deflector, retro-fitted an after market one or fabricated their own since last spring may be eligible for cost-share funding through the Great Lakes Agriculture Stewardship Initiative program. Margaret May, regional coordinator with the Ontario Soil and Crop Improvement Association, is reminding farmers that the deadline to... Read More
With findings of clubroot disease in parts of Western Canada where it has not been a problem before, at what point should a farmer in these new clubroot areas switch to growing clubroot-resistant canola varieties? To make that decision, you must first assess and prioritize the risks to your canola, suggests Anastasia Kubinec, oilseed specialist... Read More
It would seem the more work and effort Ontario farmers put in to reducing neonicotinoid use and improving bee health, the less the provincial government and farmers' own ministry wants to do with them. The Grain Farmers of Ontario recently released its pollinator health blueprint. It's a practical, well thought-out and realistic plan, with set... Read More
The Canadian government has announced $1.83 million for an research project involving international partners looking at potatoes and potato pests at a genetic level. Parliamentary Secretary Gerald Keddy, on behalf of Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz, announced the funding Fredericton on Tuesday. According to Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, researchers will use new data about the DNA... Read More
Perhaps you're already acquainted with the wild world of theoretical yields. A theoretical yield is a measure of the genetic potential a plant has, if absolutely nothing hampered yield — not the growing season, environment or pests. Can you guess what soybeans' theoretical yield is? Roughly 350 bushels an acre. Outlandish? Well, it sort of... Read More
In the Canadian context, when someone says wheat, we think bread or pasta and maybe crackers and cookies. But for huge portions of the world's population, wheat means noodles, steam buns and dumplings. While all these products do come from the same crop, it's possible that each product requires a specific class of wheat, with... Read More