If you're decided on rates and types of inputs, which do you skip or scale back on if margins become tight? Fungicide? Seed? Fertilizer? Should you cut back at all? The concept of intensively managing corn is widely accepted and researched, but not so with soybeans, so Dr. Dave Hooker and colleagues set out to... Read More
Category: Crop Production
If there's one thing farmers are focused on during the spray season, it's efficiency. A spray operation must accomplish its goal of getting the right product on, but time is of the utmost importance, especially during the hectic early season or when, say, conditions for disease progression are ideal. Learn more: What's an inversion? Tom... Read More
If there's one crop that's been generating buzz this month, it's oats, followed closely by flax. A plugged supply chain for our export markets has several farmers exploring other viable crop options for the 2014 growing seasons. Hot on the heels of this, the federal government recently announced funding for the oat market to re-build... Read More
While each and every wonder of the corn plant reaching maximum yields hinges on the weather, there are several other factors that have a measurable impact on yield. At the recent FarmSmart conference at Guelph, Ont., Bernard Tobin spoke with Dr. Fred Below, from the Universtiy of Illinois, to discuss the seven wonders of 300... Read More
Where is US ag policy headed? I guess that's the question of the day....or more accurately, that's the question that's been asked since 2010. Where is US ag policy headed? We've had some bi-polar insights into that direction with initiatives like MCOOL, which, from what we've seen and heard, do not have majority industry support... Read More
Maintaining good relationships should be a priority in any succession plan, but sometimes it's hard to get past the financial and legal jargon associated with the process. For both reasons, a farm business should consider appointing a third party to mediate discussions. And, in the meantime, it doesn't hurt to learn about some of your... Read More
After blasting past the one million acre mark in 2013, many farmers in Manitoba wonder how high soybean acres can go in the province. And it's no wonder — this long-season crop has steadily been picking up acres as average yields tick close to the 40 bushel an acre mark with strong prices. If you... Read More
In 2012, the Canadian Agricultural Adaptation Program supported the Saskatchewan Soil Conservation Association in the development of apps designed for prairie farmers. Those apps are very near completion, and in our first discussion with Tom Wolf, spray application specialist, we spoke of one that will help producers determine the spray quality of various nozzles, an... Read More
There are some factors that influence soybean yield far more than others, for example a healthy crop rotation is going to do far more to help the crop reach full potential than any amount of tillage. In this Soybean School episode, Horst Bohner, soybean specialist with Ontario Ministry of Agriculture and Food, recaps the top... Read More
By Jim Hale, grain farmer, Lancer, Saskatchewan. Find him on Twitter as @FarmerJim79 and at his blog, What I know (And What I Don't): http://cjkfarm.wordpress.com/. This post originally appeared there. After tweeting about how the grain terminal that I have my flax contracted with was having rail car logistical issue (that happen to work in... Read More