Reducing and/or preventing yield losses caused by sclerotinia in canola takes a multi-pronged approach, says a research scientist with Corteva Agriscience. Scott McClinchey, a canola breeder based in Guelph, Ont., says farmers can’t change the weather but they do have other measures within their control to help minimize the effect of the disease on their […] Read more
Sclerotinia control in canola
Growing hybrid varieties with improved disease resistance and other agronomic benefits can help protect your yields
Another excellent crop of young farmer nominees
Horticulture, beef and dairy production, along with conventional and organic crops — a year of diversity
A panel of judges will be faced with a difficult challenge in Saskatoon later this month as they look to select two national winners from a field of seven diverse, well-managed farming operations from across Canada. From tree fruit production to grass-fed beef, mixed farming to organic crop production, and dairy farming to potato production, […] Read more
Time for the ‘Big R’ has come
About 10,000 interviews and 45 billion words later there’s nothing left to say — almost
By about this time next week — October 20 to be exact — I will be retired. After about 50 years of writing and editing and rarely missing a deadline, October 20 is my last day of full-time employment. October 20 is my birthday. I will be turning 71 (where the heck did that number […] Read more
New products, genetic tools aimed at key crop diseases
It takes a multi-pronged approach to control diseases that constantly change
Western Canadian canola, corn and soybean growers will have valuable new crop protection tools for the 2023 growing season, as Corteva Agriscience introduces new packages of seed treatment products that control a range of crop pests. Known as the LumiGEN seed treatment packages — each tailored for canola, corn and soybeans — the idea is […] Read more
Improved varieties on the ground and in the pipeline
AAC Coldfront fires on all cylinders — it’s high yielding, has high quality, good standability and improved winter hardiness
Rob Graf wrapped up his career as a plant breeder with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada on a high note this summer as he introduced another new top-performing winter wheat variety that appears to have a great fit in all crop regions across Western Canada. At a field day on Stamp Seeds’ farm at Enchant, north […] Read more
No clear-cut fix in right to repair debate
It sounds like everyone wants farmers to be able to repair machinery, but there appears to be a big gap in what’s available, affordable and accessible in a timely manner
The stories are out there. Farmers held up at a time of critical field operations because machinery needed, perhaps, a fairly simple reset of computer codes or minor repair, but it took hours for a dealership technician to get there to do it. Northern Alberta farmer Cole Siegle has told his story a few times. […] Read more
Benefits of winter crops outweigh the challenges
Depending on seeding conditions, the best approach may be to ‘seed shallow and pray for rain’
As the calendar rolls around to August and September each year, south-central Alberta farmer Larry Penner finds himself in two time zones — seeding time and harvest time. For a good part of his farming career, Penner has been a believer of including a winter cereal crop in rotation. He says the timing can be […] Read more
Beef marketing closely linked to herd health, nutrition
When to buy, when to sell and how management changes make a difference
So what is a beef marketing specialist doing working with a livestock nutrition company? For the Alberta-based, Prairie-wide More Than Just Feed, marketing cattle is all part of the production cycle. That’s why they’ve recently brought Brian Perillat, former longtime manager with Canfax, on board to work with company consultants as well as directly with […] Read more
Nutrition key to optimizing purebred performance
It’s all about fertile females and bulls with breeding soundness
Dave Longshore doesn’t take any shortcuts when it comes to proper nutrition for his purebred Black Angus operation in central Alberta. It’s important to produce healthy, sound and fertile bulls that will be offered as breeding stock, and if cows and heifers aren’t fed a well-balanced ration with proper mineral supplements, that will also mean […] Read more
The biggest bang for your buck? Improve soil organic matter
Soil organic matter is vital for crop production and soil health — here’s what it does, why and how to improve it on hilltops and knolls
If you can tackle only one thing on your farm to enhance crop yields, let it be ways to improve soil organic matter. That may be somewhat of an oversimplification considering all of the factors that affect yield, but protecting and, where needed, improving soil organic matter levels may deliver the biggest bang for the […] Read more
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