As the dicamba drift situation unfolds in soybean growing areas of North America, with millions of acres affected, there are some serious questions that will need to be answered in the coming months. How extensive was the damage? What were the factors that led to dicamba herbicide ending up in places where it wasn't supposed... Read More
Category: Western Canada
On this week's episode of Wheat Pete's Word, RealAg Agronomist Peter Johnson talks about the never ending insect invasion that has gone on all of this growing season. He also talks about all the diseases he's seeing, and possible management techniques. And wondering whether to take soybeans as hay or wait for potential yields after... 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
Syngenta plans to sell soybean and corn varieties with the Enlist herbicide tolerance trait after reaching non-exclusive licensing agreements with Dow AgroSciences and M.S. Technologies. The licenses include the Enlist E3 trait for soybeans in Canada, the U.S., and Latin America, and the global rights for the Enlist event in corn. The Enlist weed control... 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
When crops reach record high acreages on both sides of the border the market should respond negatively to higher supply levels. Increased supply has to be supported with increased demand and that has been definitely the story in soybeans. Even though the November soybean futures contract (can be seen below) is off earlier highs farmers... Read More
Grain markets this week saw a significant sell-off as better growing conditions are helping improve crop prospects. Soybeans had a terrible week, down 5.35%. Chicago wheat wasn’t that far behind, down 5.3%. Oats fell 2.5%. Corn and canola were both down 1.9%. This despite the Canadian Dollar also falling 1.8% from its high last week.... 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
It's been over 20 years since most of today's rules on government agriculture support aimed at reducing trade distorting programs were agreed to in the North American Free Trade Agreement and the World Trade Organization's Agreement on Agriculture. Over time, countries have adapted and found ways to circumvent limits and continue providing support to domestic... Read More