The combination of increased soybean acres and high soybean aphid pressure on the prairies in 2017 has sparked conversations about thresholds, beneficial insects, and how to decide when spraying is warranted. The economic threshold for soybean aphids in Canada has traditionally been 250 aphids per plant on 80 percent of plants, with the population still... Read More
Category: Western Canada
Lygus bugs are known for attacking canola, alfalfa and sunflowers (you can probably blame the lygus for that gross seed), but they can also be a significant pest in fababeans — especially after their canola food source is harvested. In general, lygus bug species like to feed on the reproductive parts of plants. "Similar to... Read More
As the clash between the U.S. and Canadian dairy industries escalates in the NAFTA talks, Dairy Farmers of Canada has found some allies in U.S. dairy outside of the U.S. Dairy Export Council and the National Milk Federation. In the National Post on Friday, Darin Von Ruden, who has a 50-cattle, multi-generational farm and heads... Read More
Not often do you hear of wheat outyielding corn, but that's the case in our latest episode in the 'Real' Wheat Farmers series. RealAgriculture resident agronomist Peter Johnson can barely contain himself when Arthur, Ontario farmer Shawn Schill of Shawridge Farms tells him that one 200-acre field yielded 154 bu/ac of wheat, beating the average... Read More
With the NAFTA renegotiations starting this week, officials with the U.S. National Cattlemen's Beef Association (NCBA) were in Calgary for the Canadian Beef Industry Conference, showing their support for the relationship between the two countries. Representatives from both the Canadian Cattlemen's Association and NCBA plan on heading to Washington for the anticipating beginning of the... Read More
Trade and market access are always major topics at cattle industry meetings, but with the renegotiation of NAFTA becoming reality, there was a little extra emphasis on the politics of trade this week at the Canadian Beef Industry Conference in Calgary. If there were any questions about how unified cattle producer groups from Canada, the... Read More
Karen Schwartzkopf-Genswein, a senior research scientist with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada in Lethbridge, received the Canadian Beef Industry Award for Outstanding Research and Innovation at the Canadian Beef Industry Conference in Calgary last night. Dr. Schwartzkopf-Genswein was honoured for her contributions to advancements in the competitiveness and sustainability of the Canadian beef industry through her... Read More
Federal Agriculture Minister Lawrence MacAulay and Manitoba Minister of Agriculture Ralph Eichler were at the University of Manitoba's Glenlea Research Station south of Winnipeg on Wednesday to announce more than $1.4 million in funding for dairy research. The investment will go towards animal nutrition, health, and welfare research, as well as well as to aid... Read More
BASF says it has cleared all necessary approvals, including the establishment of maximum residue limits (MRLs) in all major export markets, enabling pre-harvest application of Heat LQ herbicide on wheat and barley in Western Canada. "This is something producers have been asking for for a really long time, and now that we're in a position... Read More
Winter durum wheat isn't grown in Western Canada, but the possible benefits have breeders working on developing it. As Jamie Larsen with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada in Lethbridge discusses in this Wheat School episode, winter durum could perform well during dry years, and face reduced fusarium head blight (FHB) risk compared with spring durum. "We... Read More