This is the story of Dallas Leduc, Venture Ridge Farms, near Glentworth, Sask.
Every farm has its own story. No two farms (or farmers) are exactly alike. Everyone got started in a different way, and every farm has a different combination of family and hired staff who make the decisions and keep things running. But, in general, even after you consider all of the details, Prairie farmers are […] Read more
Try these three tips to get the most from your grain bag storage this harvest season
Many Western Canadian producers are turning to grain bags either as a backup to bin storage or a logistical solution during the busy harvest season. According to Dave Nelson, senior vice-president of sales for Loftness, there are a host of reasons why producers might want to consider grain bagging. “When all of the bins on […] Read more
This homemade grain catcher helps farmer fine-tune combine settings
When David Hofer’s equipment stopped meeting his needs, he did something farmers have done for millennia: he jerry-rigged something that works better. In this case, it’s a combine loss drop pan made of nylon tarp and fiberglass rods that can be thrown directly under combine wheels without bending or breaking. Hofer farms around 10,000 acres […] Read more
This Manitoba farmer says quinoa has been an agronomic bonus for his farm
Quinoa is no longer just for health nuts. Most Canadian consumers are familiar with the ancient grain, and it’s increasingly used as a value-added ingredient in boxed cereals and baked goods due to its high protein and fibre content. And though its low acreage still puts it in the “niche” category of production in western […] Read more
This is the story of Mark and Bobbie Bratrud, near Weyburn, Sask.
Every farm has its own story. No two farms (or farmers) are exactly alike. Everyone got started in a different way, and every farm has a different combination of family and hired staff who make the decisions and keep things running. But, in general, even after you consider all of the details, farmers are more […] Read more
Wireworms are a growing concern for the potato industry. Creative controls are needed
Wireworm populations appear to be on the rise in Western Canada. Wireworm, which is the larval stage of the adult click beetle, affects many crops, including cereals and pulses, but they are particularly damaging to potatoes. Holes created by wireworms can render tubers unmarketable and serve as points of entry for potato pathogens. This pest has […] Read more
Although there’s a perception that dust is past, tillage erosion is on the rise in Manitoba
It seemed like the beginning of the end of the world: friends and neighbours dying of “dust pneumonia” and massive dust storms sweeping the land. These are some of the recollections of people who were alive in the “Dirty 30s,” recorded for an oral history project by Daryl Ritchison, interim director of the North Dakota […] Read more
This colour-changing disease is making its way to western Canadian potato fields
Zebra chip” is a fun, jaunty name for a potato disease that has nobody in the industry laughing. The disease, which causes harmless but unsightly stripes in potato chips, costs producers millions of dollars annually in New Zealand and the United States. Now the zebra chip pathogen has been found for the first time in […] Read more
Potato growers could soon be growing Colorado potato beetle-resistant plants
New potato varieties that are naturally resistant to Colorado potato beetle could be on the market in five years, according to Helen Tai, a potato breeder at Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada’s Potato Research Centre in Fredericton. Tai is the lead on the breeding project, which has been underway for 30 years, she says, since AAFC […] Read more
This new higher-yielding, six-row barley variety is on the road to certification
A new six-row hulled spring feed and forage barley variety should soon be in farmers’ fields. SR14501 — which will gain a trade name prior to commercialization — was developed by Alberta’s Field Crop Development Centre in response to producers’ requests for a barley with good lodging resistance, says barley breeder Joseph Nyachiro. “It is […] Read more
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