Here’s what you learn when you ask a sampling of western Canadian farmers how 2016 went and what’s ahead for the coming seeding season: Corn and soybeans did very well in 2016. Looking ahead, disease pressure on cereal and pulse crops could change the cropping landscape. An early spring would be a blessing considering there […] Read more
A goldilocks year, and few found it ‘just right’
Early winter, in the middle of harvest, definitely took its toll
Human-pig chimeras! Who knew?
There’s never a dull moment around the old biotech R & D table
Ever since I met my first computer in about 1980, I’ve had this sinking feeling that science and technology is slipping away from me. There I was as a new kid in the Lethbridge Herald newsroom. I had used a typewriter all during my early career, and here I was sitting in front of a […] Read more
94 is out there — don’t settle for average
Agronomics, fertility and overall nutrition can raise field pea yields as high as 94 bushels per acre
It was only a plot, and it wasn’t necessarily a realistic crop nutrient program most producers would consider following, but an ATP Nutrition demonstration at a Saskatchewan farm show last summer, showed Prairie farmers it is possible to produce an 94 bushel field pea crop. That 94 bushel yield, on plots at the Ag In […] Read more
A closer look at some good news stories
BY LEE HART Three supposedly “good news” stories to report on today: 1. Health Canada has approved ground beef for irradiation; 2. Research shows eating saturated fats such as butter and well marbled meat may not be bad for your heart, and; 3. NASA has found seven earth-sized planets that may support life. ABOUT IRRADIATION […] Read more
In praise of old tractors and horses
Hart Attacks: It’s been a long journey from horses to tractors to aerial drone technology
I was just catching up on my reading, going through the January 1938 issue of Country Guide magazine and I’m sorry I missed out on a contest to win a brand new Massey Harris tractor in a contest sponsored by Gillett’s Lye. All you had to do is to get every family member, friend, neighbour […] Read more
Soil nutrients are in deficit after 2016
Consider the toll 2016’s big crop took on NPKS when planning for 2017 fertility
Make sure you have a late fall or early spring soil test as a guide to plant your 2017 crop fertility program. After the 2016 growing season, this is even more important than usual, says Rigas Karamanos, a long-time soil specialists who is now a senior agronomist for Koch Fertilizer Canada. Karamanos says his message isn’t […] Read more
Fertilizer expert discourages winter application
While winter application can even out workload, losses are high and pollution is a risk
Considering how the 2016 growing/harvest season went, there may be a real crunch this spring to first find and then get fertilizer applied at seeding, but if you’re thinking it might be a good idea to get a jump on workload and apply fertilizer this winter on snow or frozen ground — DON’T. That’s the advice […] Read more
When I listened, I did learn some things from Andy Sirski
I was sorry to learn this past weekend that a long-time and former Grainews editor and columnist Andy Sirski had passed away Friday in a Winnipeg hospital. I haven’t read any details yet, but I believe he was in his early 70s. I’ve known Sirski for many years, but to be honest I didn’t know […] Read more
Banff bison are back, but…
I really didn’t get any warm fuzzy feeling with news in recent days that Parks Canada has reintroduced bison to Banff National Park. There was some newsworthy fanfare that after 140 years absence (of free roaming bison) and after it sounds like considerable planning, park officials released 16 head of bison in a remote area […] Read more
The federal carbon tax is already working!
Hart Attacks: It's a miracle. I haven't been feeling any global warming on the Prairies this January
I don’t know what the country is whining about. Alberta’s Climate Change Leadership program (I love that label), also known as a carbon tax, IS WORKING! As I pointed out to my inner circle in an earlier Facebook post, January 2017 is already much colder than it was in late December 2016, so just having […] Read more
Cyber-Savvy Farmer
