Spring has officially arrived—at least meteorologically—and Peter "Wheat Pete" Johnson is feeling the energy shift. With warmer temperatures across parts of Ontario and winter wheat already breaking dormancy in the deep southwest, the conversation on Wheat Pete's Word this week ranges from big wheat yield potential and unusual winter weather in the U.S. Pacific Northwest... Read More
Category: Crop Production
It's no secret that the 2026 crop year is shaping up to be one where profitability is a major concern. The RealAgristudies Insights Panel indicated that 75 per cent see 2026 to be a riskier season than 2025. Getting through this kind of farming environment requires real farm financial survival skills. In January, Canadian farmers... Read More
In the ongoing battle against herbicide-resistant weeds, stories of success are often hard to find. However, North Dakota has achieved a rare victory against one of the most problematic weeds in North America: Palmer amaranth. Speaking at the CropConnect conference in Winnipeg last month, Brian Jenks, weed scientist with North Dakota State University, shared the... Read More
As planting season gets underway in the southern U.S., growers are weighing fertility decisions against another year of tight margins and high input costs. In this RealAg Radio interview from Agronomic Monday, Mike Howell, senior agronomist with Nutrien and host of The Dirt podcast, discussed the risks of trimming fertilizer rates too far and what... Read More
On this episode of The Agronomists, host Lyndsey Smith is joined by guests Tammy Jones of Paterson Grain and Jenny Rae Seward of Cronkhite Ag to discuss how weeds adapt to management and how herbicide resistance complicates weed control. Jones and Seward cover herbicide layering strategies, best management practices for weed control, and also discuss... Read More
Chinese authorities have formally lowered the country's "anti-dumping" tariff on Canadian canola seed, while also suspending tariffs on canola meal, peas, and lobsters. The final ruling from the Chinese Ministry of Commerce, effective March 1, lowers the countervail duty on canola seed from all Canadian exporters to 5.9 per cent from the preliminary rate of... Read More
Bourgault is expanding its ParaLink opener lineup with the introduction of the PLDX — the ParaLink Dual Xtreme — a new dual shank offering designed to improve contourability, seed placement, and durability. The PLDX builds off the company’s PLDS platform, bringing a one-to-one contour ratio into a dual knife configuration. “This is the only one... Read More
Advances in remote sensing and digital imaging are helping researchers detect crop stress earlier and measure plant traits with a level of precision that traditional field scouting can’t match. Dr. Keshav Singh, remote sensing and phenomics lead with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada at Lethbridge, Alta., is leading a program that uses drones and ground-based robotic... Read More
Strip-till continues to gain traction as growers look for ways to balance soil conservation with strong yield performance. At Commodity Classic in San Antonio, RealAgriculture’s Bernard Tobin caught up with CJ Parker, soil management marketing manager at Case IH, to discuss the launch of the new Nutri-Tiller 1000 series strip-till tool. Built on the company’s... Read More
By Ron DePauw and Rob Graf Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada’s (AAFC) plan to close research stations across multiple provinces targets the very infrastructure that underpins Canada’s agricultural competitiveness while leaving the department’s growing administrative overhead largely untouched. No one disputes the need for fiscal discipline. But cutting front-line science that consistently delivers some of the... Read More