Now that you know why you should enrol your farm in Workers’ Comp here’s how to do it. In Alberta, applying is as easy as visiting the Workers’ Compensation Board Alberta website (www.wcb.ab.ca). There’s a search engine on the main page. If you search for “farm,” you’ll get to a page called “Farming Coverage.” Right […] Read more
How to enrol your farm workers in WCB
Farm Management: Now that you want to sign your farm up for Workers Comp, here’s the “how to”
Why should you enrol your farm in WCB?
Farm Management: Even when it’s not mandatory, there are good reasons to enrol in Workers Comp
In some of the Prairie provinces it is mandatory for farmer employers to sign up for Workers Compensation (WCB) for their workers. In Manitoba, it’s been mandatory since 2009. Some farmers still haven’t signed up or don’t realize that they need to. “Way back when, before medicare and before WCB, if a worker was injured […] Read more
Leaf spotting: what you need to know
The fight against tan leaf spot, and what you can do about it in your fields
We’ve been working with leaf spots for the last 26 years,” says Dr. Myriam Fernandez, an Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada research scientist, and lead author of the a recently released 12-year study of the impacts on climate change, region and agronomic practices on leaf spotting in wheat and durum, conducted between 2001 and 2012. Leaf […] Read more
New year, new seed treatment rules
Rules won’t affect on-farm treatment, unless the products you use are “restricted”
When new rules for commercial and mobile seed treatment operations come into effect on January 1, 2017, farmers won’t notice much change. The standards won’t apply to farmers treating their own seed on-farm, and CropLife Canada, the association that represents the plant science industry, believes having consistent standards will be good for the industry. The […] Read more
SU-tolerant canola from Cibus
Cibus’ sulfonylurea-tolerant
Cibus, a U.S. company, is bringing a new sulfonylurea-tolerant canola to the market. Cibus developed SU-tolerant canola using non-transgenic breeding technologies. That is, breeding, without introducing foreign genetic material. As Dr. Jim Radtke, Cibus’ senior vice president, product development, says, we are “making changes in plants without incorporating foreign DNA and thus the plants are […] Read more
Lock in sales with a special contract
Looking for a way to differentiate your crop from the rest of the pack?
Are you looking for ways to change your marketing situation? Differentiate your product from everything else at the elevator? Signing special contracts with specific companies is one way to do this. Avena Food pays its contact holders premium prices for gluten-free oats. Warburtons, a U.K. bread company, pays premiums for specialty wheat grown by contract holding […] Read more
Protect yourself against wheat midge
Wheat midge may be on the rise this year, especially in southeastern Saskatchewan
Farmers in most areas of Saskatchewan need to be aware of wheat midge, says Scott Hartley, Saskatchewan’s provincial specialist for insect pest management. Specifically, eastern Saskatchewan, primarily east central and southeast. There’s another section from Prince Albert south, “extending quite a ways, at least down to close to Bethune.” Midge threats in Alberta aren’t as high, but are more pronounced east of Edmonton and in the Peace region. However, Alberta […] Read more
Protect your profits from flea beetles
Insect Management: In a warm dry summer growing season, flea beetles could have a chance to thrive
If you’re growing canola or mustard this year (or garden vegetables like broccoli or cauliflower) you might need to be concerned about the flea beetle, says Scott Hartley, provincial insect/vertebrate pest management specialist for Saskatchewan. Climate conditions matter, though, when it comes to certain pests, and the flea beetle is no different. “If it’s going […] Read more
Be on your guard for grasshoppers
Grasshopper numbers are up in Alberta. Warm dry weather will give them an edge
Grasshoppers were found in higher numbers in 2015 in Alberta. Unfortunately, the same is expected for 2016, says Scott Meers, Alberta Agriculture insect management specialist. The Peace region, the extreme north and northwest areas of Alberta, are expected to have high grasshopper numbers. Farmers west of Edmonton also saw high populations last year and the […] Read more
Coping with the cabbage seedpod weevil
Our mild winter may have been beneficial for the cabbage seedpod weevil
Cabbage seedpod weevils are a perennial problem for canola and mustard growers in southern Alberta. Their range has expanded up to the northern and south central parts of the province in the last couple of years and, says Scott Meers, Alberta Agriculture and Forestry insect management specialist. “Saskatchewan has economic infestations as far as east […] Read more
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