With pea and lentil harvest underway, the question on the forefront of many growers' minds — what is the quality of my crop that's coming off? We think about what sort of season and conditions the crop has gone through, and while sometimes you are prepared for the sample you're looking at, sometimes you aren't.... Read More

When people go trail riding or use their ATV for recreational use, wearing a helmet is something that most don’t blink an eye to. They do it with no questions asked. So why is it when we use them around the farm, we hop on the quad at the same speeds, helmet-less, without thinking twice?... Read More

When marketing your peas, lentils, or any other crop, it can be helpful to have a third-party assessment showing the grade, protein content and other attributes of what you're selling. Every year the Canadian Grain Commission (CGC) looks for samples from farmers from across Canada as a part of its Harvest Sample Program. The program,... Read More

The ability to precisely place individual seeds in a row, as with corn or soybeans, has led some canola growers to switch from air seeders to vacuum planters. Trials in southern Alberta support the hypothesis that better seed-to-soil contact from using a planter results in improved germination and emergence, says Mike Gretzinger, research manager for... Read More

Stripe rust was back in Ontario wheat fields again in 2017. This year the presence of the disease was first confirmed in Essex County by AGRIS Co-operative. This marks the second consecutive year the disease has devastated farm fields in the province. But help is on the way. In this edition of RealAgriculture Wheat School,... Read More

Beneficial insects provide free labour in the field, preying on insect pests, but what is that labour worth? Because we don't know the economic value of most of these insects, they don't necessarily get factored into the decision to go ahead with spraying an insecticide. Finding economic values for the work these beneficial bugs are... Read More

As a farmer, you take care of our crops all year, pouring thousands of dollars into making sure the final product is up to the standards you expected. So why would you let all that time and money spent go down the drain when you lose a good portion of your crop to harvest loss?... Read More

As harvest begins, the goal is always to get the crop off in the condition that maximizes its value to buyers. In the case of malt barley, there's a list of specs that maltsters are looking at, starting with protein level and kernel plumpness, explains Kevin Sich, supply chain director for Rahr Malting at Alix,... Read More

When we think of sprayer drift, we usually associate it with wind, but there are other environmental factors that influence where droplets end up. Tom Wolf, spray specialist with Agrimetrix and Sprayers101.com, takes a fun twist on learning more about spray drift in this Canola School video, using...a bubble machine. "The bubbles fly just like... Read More