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Columns, Practical Tips

Let’s look at the facts on pesticides

Practical Research: Chemicals found in nature aren’t intrinsically safer than the man-made options

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The May 2024 edition of Consumer Reports, published by a well-regarded U.S. not-for-profit independent organization, examined “Produce Without Pesticides.” The article carried a lead statement that some 20 per cent of the 59 fruits and vegetables in its ratings posed a high risk for pesticides. It also made the statement that some of our favourite […] Read more
Here we see a drone’s-eye view of an abandoned Canadian peat moss farm in dry summer conditions.
Columns, Crops, Practical Tips

Peatland farming, the Prairies’ best-kept secret

Practical Research: Improving these lands' copper fertility could potentially pay significant dividends

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In 1981, I heard a discussion on micronutrients in crop production by the late Jerry Stoller. He talked about the need to pay attention to the micronutrient needs of crops, because just like macronutrients — nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium and sulphur — they can be depleted over time on even the best cropland. Stoller also said […] Read more
Keeping reference materials current for the farming community could help ward off weeds and pests before they become endemic.
Columns, Crops, Practical Tips

Recognize the value of books, fact sheets, texts

Practical Research: Don’t assume that your phone will have all the answers at hand

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During my long tenure with Alberta Agriculture we, as a crop protection unit, produced many farmer information presentations, fact sheets, books, booklets, broadcasts and seminars. From 2000 onward, Alberta Agriculture severely cut down on this and other farm information units. The books and fact sheets are fully relevant today but they need upgrading and maintenance, […] Read more
Cross-section of an infected canola plant root. Verticillium fungus spreads upward through a plant’s vascular tissues and can create this sort of discolouration, which looks somewhat similar to blackleg.
Canola, Columns, Practical Tips

Keep verticillium stripe in focus this year

Practical Research: Don't let the fungi hitchhike between fields on your equipment -- or anyone else's

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Where did such a destructive disease come from? Verticillium stripe was first reported in Manitoba in 2014, some 10 years ago. The fungus, Verticillium longisporum, has now been confirmed present in six provinces: British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario and Quebec. In a survey in 2023 across Manitoba, verticillium stripe was found in 38 per […] Read more
Ergot is best recognized in the field as black or dark purple sclerotia sticking out of a floret.
Columns, Crops, Practical Tips

How a worldwide destructive cereal disease problem was solved in Alberta

In the story of ergot in wheat, barley and oats, the answer was simply 'copper'

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When I was first hired by Alberta Agriculture as a diagnostic plant pathologist, I was told I would be primarily responsible for barley, oat, wheat and canola diseases. I was also asked to head up the provincial control program for bacterial ring rot of potato (BRR). The BRR program, run in partnership with the federal […] Read more
A tomato harvest from planter boxes in Winnipeg.
Columns, Crops, Practical Tips

Tomatoes and onions in gardens everywhere

Part 7 of a series: On all farms, tomatoes should go into ground not previously used for tomatoes

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Tomatoes Tomatoes originated in South America from wild plants with grape-sized fruit. They were developed by the Indigenous peoples of the Americas. They were first brought to Europe in the 1540s, to Italy in particular by the 1550s. North Americans were slow to pick up on tomatoes, regarding them as poisonous until almost the year […] Read more
The older the seed, the greater the loss of vigour and germination will be.
Columns, Crops, Practical Tips

Saving your own crop seed

Don't just assume two- or three-year-old seed, or even last year's seed, will still be viable

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Look before you leap! Check your seed before you plant. Before getting into the topic of saving your own seed, whether it be cereals or legumes or any crop except for canola, I talked to several consultants and seed growers. Their answers were that few growers use all-new seed every year. These few exceptions actually […] Read more
As picturesque together as they may be, onions and garlic should be kept in separate areas while growing in the garden.
Columns, Practical Tips

More on Prairie vegetables and fruits

Part 6 of a series: Let’s look further at what grows well on the Prairies — and when it doesn’t, why

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In previous issues I dealt with potatoes and the cabbage family of garden vegetables, but perhaps I should also take a look at all and any successfully grown Prairie vegetable crops. To do this, I should list all vegetable crops into related categories, as in the table shown here, so we can more clearly plan […] Read more
Researchers now recommend allowing one or two years between terminating an old alfalfa stand and reseeding.
Columns, Forages, Practical Tips

Alfalfa replant disease and related disorders

Whatever the cause, we can realize it's a problem and try to avoid it

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Back in the 1980s I spent a lot of time on alfalfa diseases, particularly the verticillium wilt disease problem that was spreading across the Prairies, particularly in southern Alberta. In a few snow-free and cold Decembers in those years, a lot of damage was done to alfalfa, winterkilling entire fields of three-year-old stands. Even white […] Read more
What’s now known as the Evans cherry likely had ancestry in Siberia and was brought to Alaska by Russian immigrants.
Apples, Columns, Fruit/Vegetables, Practical Tips

Fruit growing on Prairie farms

Part 5 of a series on Prairie farm gardens

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Fruit growing on the Canadian Prairies is much easier and more rewarding than most people ever imagine. I am an avid fruit grower on my Alberta acreage, growing everything from plums, pears, grapes, apples and cherries to currants and raspberries. You name it, I am growing it. I am familiar with backyard Prairie gardens all […] Read more

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