Screenshot from an Alberta Agriculture video profiling Innisfail-based pulse and grain handler W.A. Grain and Pulse Solutions. (Alberta Agriculture and Forestry via YouTube)

W.A. Grain’s farmer suppliers to get 80 cents on dollar

CGC program to provide $5.6 million of $7.1 million owed

Farmers owed $7.1 million by W.A. Grain and Pulse Solutions, which had facilities in Alberta and Saskatchewan, will get $5.6 million, or about 80 per cent of the money owed to them, via the Canadian Grain Commission’s (CGC) Safeguards for Grain Farmers Program. “While we regret producers didn’t get 100 per cent (of what they […] Read more

(4loops/iStock/Getty Images)

Pulse weekly outlook: Manitoba growers hope timely rains follow snows

High N prices may favour pulse acres

MarketsFarm — As March 1 marked the start of meteorological spring, it feels like anything but that in southern Manitoba. One of the snowiest and coldest winters in years has been a mixed blessing for pulse growers, providing much-needed moisture for fields while also raising flood fears in some areas. Dennis Lange, a pulse specialist […] Read more


Germination and vigour have been affected by damage to pulse crop seeds. Extremely dry conditions during the growing season and at harvest and a period of extremely cold conditions for a few weeks in early winter contributed to increased levels of seed cracking as shown in the yellow peas above.

Seed quality, seed supply and management tips for 2022

Deal with reputable seed suppliers and make sure all seed batches are tested ahead of the seeding season

Not that it is a major news blast, but if they haven’t done so already western Canadian farmers need to be thinking now about getting seed sources lined up for the 2022 growing season. Also, if they’re planning to use farm-saved seed, make sure it is properly tested for germination and vigour. The 2021 growing […] Read more

The 70-foot-wide Seed Hawk air drill at Bailla Farms has a 980-bushel tank with four compartments. With sectional controls every 10 feet across the width of the drill, it is very responsive to variable-rate seed and fertilizer placement as it passes over 10 different production zones in each field.

Do SWAT Maps deliver?

Farmers say layered information allows them to apply inputs where they do the most good

Colin Rosengren and Kelly Baillargeon farm on almost opposite ends of Saskatchewan, yet they have the same thinking when it comes to what they expect from precision farming and variable-rate technology (VRT). Rosengren owns Rosengren Farms along with family members at Midale, in southeast Saskatchewan, while about 650 kilometres to the northwest, Baillargeon owns Bailla […] Read more


(Dave Bedard photo)

Adjustments minor in latest AAFC crop balance sheets

MarketsFarm — Only minor adjustments to the old- and new-crop balance sheets were reported by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada in their February supply/demand report, released Friday. New-crop production estimates were left unchanged for all of the major grains, oilseeds and pulses, with a return to average yields across the Prairies expected to lead to increased […] Read more

Nitrogen fertilizer requirements for dry beans: new emerging guidelines

Nitrogen fertilizer requirements for dry beans: new emerging guidelines

Research indicates Manitoba growers may be applying too much nitrogen — assess nodules and/or start on-farm trials

If you’re a dry bean grower in Manitoba, you may be spending too much on supplemental nitrogen even when staying within the province’s recommendations, says Kristen MacMillan, a research agronomist for the University of Manitoba’s department of plant science. A five-site-year study conducted by MacMillan revealed using no nitrogen fertilizer on pinto and navy beans […] Read more


(Bondarillia/iStock/Getty Images)

Pulse weekly outlook: Pulse stocks drop due to drought

MarketsFarm — Statistics Canada’s latest report on stocks of principal field crops clearly demonstrated how much of an effect last summer’s historic drought in Western Canada had on pulse crops. According to the report released Tuesday, last December’s total domestic stocks for dry peas, chickpeas, lentils and soybeans all declined from the year earlier. Those […] Read more

Registered for use on wheat, barley, oats, rye and triticale crops, Sphaerex is a Group 3 fungicide offering broad spectrum protection against a wide range of late-season cereal diseases.

New fungicides for 2022

Tools to manage resistance development, ergot suppression and more

Protecting their crops is always top of mind for farmers. And crop protection companies are constantly developing new products and formulations to address disease challenges and other threats that arise every year. The following are some new fungicides producers in Western Canada can look for in 2022. BASF Sphaerex Registered for use on wheat, barley, […] Read more


Rebate roundup 2022

Rebate roundup 2022

These cash-back plans can help you get the most for your hard-earned input dollars

As we all know, farming can be an expensive business. No surprise then when opportunities arise to save some cash on crop inputs, almost any farmer is going to sit up and take notice. With this in mind (in alphabetical order), here’s our annual roundup of rebates available to western Canadian producers for the 2022 […] Read more

CDC Sunburst is a new Mayocoba yellow bean variety developed by the Crop Development Centre at the University of Saskatchewan.

Two new pulse varieties for 2022

Red lentil and yellow bean varieties on offer

Western Canadian farmers have two more pulses to choose from this year, courtesy of the Crop Development Centre (CDC) at the University of Saskatchewan. The brand new varieties, a red lentil and a yellow bean, are available through Rudy Agro, SeedNet and Saskatchewan Pulse Growers. CDC Sunburst is a new variety of yellow bean, which […] Read more