These Super Spindle trees help apple growers increase efficiency and production.

Apples have come a long way, baby

Men cannot live by canola, wheat and barley alone. Put an apple on your plate

If you ever wonder where apples come from forget the notion they are produced in some lazy looking orchard, with grand, sprawling shady trees that have been growing for centuries under which you can spread a blanket for a picnic lunch before picking the next basket. Get ready for the Super Spindle. That was the […] Read more

Watch those pricing signs

Watch those pricing signs

Grade and protein spreads change during the year. Take advantage of change to increase your profits

My last column talked about futures spreads, and how you understand what’s happening in the marketplace by watching how and why spreads change over time. Now, a look at more pricing signals: grade and protein spreads. During the era of the Canadian Wheat Board, grade and protein spreads changed very little throughout the marketing year. The CWB, […] Read more


Tile drainage in progress south of Melfort, October 2014. The water table was high and tiles were running as soon as installed. The drain outlet is Melfort Creek. This project is on the Alan Hurd farm. Mark Gordon of Agri-Trend provided the soil EC mapping of the site and Stu Brandt of NARF (Northeast Agricultural Research Foundation) installed the observation wells and is monitoring the site.

Soil salinity: causes, cures, coping

After recent wet years, we’re seeing salinity again. Learn to cure it or cope with it

A few years back we predicted that the super wet years would lead to a marked increase in soil salinity. It is now happening. In this piece I am not going to talk about Solonetzic soils or true Alkali (high pH , low salts) soils. I’m talking only about saline soils — soils that have […] Read more

You probably saw a copy of this Grainews marketing brochure in your mailbox.

You asked for it, you’ve got it

Reporter's Notebook: Lisa Guenther starts out the new year by giving Grainews readers what they want

I’ve decided to start out the New Year by writing at least one Grainews column that is focused on what readers want, rather than whatever is rattling around inside my head. Based on subscriber feedback and our own marketing material, it seems our readers want advice on everything from dealing with gossip to making easy […] Read more


Editing transactions with AgExpert: Pt. 2

Even the best bookkeepers don't always get it right the first time. Here's how to fix it

Getting help with the AgExpert bookkeeping has never been easier. FCC Management Software has provided many new avenues to give you support you need. The AgExpert online community is a way for you to communicate with fellow AgExpert users in discussion boards, chat live with FCC support staff and look up answers to almost any question. […] Read more

Higher interest, rising bond prices

U.S. interest rates are heading up, and bond prices are rising. Here's why security pays

The ominous Chinese greeting, “may you live in interesting times,” has arrived in Canada. We face declining energy prices that are dragging down the entire economy to nearly zero growth. Canadian stocks are accordingly dismal. Our partner to the south, the U.S., has a soaring currency that will inhibit its exports. As a result, the […] Read more


Backing up your data with AgExpert

Learn how to back up and restore you data files and use other file-saving features

Creating proper backups of your data file is an important part of bookkeeping procedures when using an accounting (or any) software. I learned the hard way when my computer hard drive crashed one night and I couldn’t recover my data. I knew I should have backed up my work to a second location such as […] Read more

soil

Diagnosing and managing acid soils

Acidic soils can restrict plant growth. Learn how to recognize and manage these soils on your farm

Soils with a pH ranging between 6.0 and 8.0 are suitable for most crops on the Prairies. Soils with a pH range between 6.5 to 7.5 are considered to be near neutral. Soil pH between 6.0 to 5.6, 5.5 to 5.1 and < 5.0 are considered to be moderately acidic, strongly acidic and very strongly […] Read more



I think what the consumer wants, and perhaps mostly demands, is a good-quality product, safe and healthy, hopefully tasty, and available at the lowest price possible.

What’s with “consumer demand?”

Both retailers and farm groups are using farm practices as a marketing pitch

I have to admit I am more than a little sceptical of the term “consumer demand.” If I believed every TV commercial, news report, magazine article and corporate pitch talking about consumer demand I doubt I’d be able to leave the house without running into an angry mob rallied in front of some office or […] Read more