Farmers planning to try Engage Agro’s new plant growth regulator, Manipulator, this year will first want to call their grain buyers. Many Prairie farmers recently received letters from Winnipeg grain firm Parrish and Heimbecker, for example, stating P+H will not buy wheat treated with Manipulator this season. “We completely understand why a lot of the […] Read more
Minogue: Call your grain buyer before applying Manipulator
Crop research company develops faster genome mapping system
Faster gene mapping will help wheat breeders develop new wheat varieties more quickly
The Israeli research company NRGene has broken new ground when it comes to speed in mapping maize genomes. It used to take months, or even years to map a complete genome. Now, NRGene has mapped five maize genomes in just five weeks. Guy Kol is one of the company’s founders, and its vice-president of research […] Read more
Hope in sight to help protect peas from aphanomyces
NuFarm seed treatment will help protect seedling’s roots during early season growth
In early April, NuFarm announced that it had received emergency use registration of its INTEGO Solo seed treatment for suppression of Aphanomyces euteiches in field peas. INTEGO Solo (ethaboxam) is a Group 22 fungicide registered for pythium control and the suppression of seed rot caused by Phytophthora and aphanomyces. It had already been registered Canada-wide […] Read more
2015 crop input rebate roundup
Corporate rebate programs can make a difference to your bottom line, or at least give you a bonus cheque
I’m sure you’ve seen most of this information in your mailbox at least once, but here’s a chance to see a rundown of all the input rebate programs in one place, to make it a little simpler to compare offers while you’re putting the final touches on your spring seeding plans. For the most part, […] Read more
Who’s representing your soybeans?
“It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife.” This opening line of Jane Austen’s 1813 novel, Pride and Prejudice is still relevant today if we replace “single man” with “up-and-coming crop,” and “wife” with “industry association.” As soybean acreage grows, […] Read more
Minogue: Rebalance your fields’ phosphorus bank accounts
While your crop rotations and your seeding practices have evolved into something your grandfather might not recognize, recommended phosphorous guidelines for Manitoba farmers haven’t changed in more than 20 years. Over the past year, Manitoba soil fertility experts came together to fill this gap. John Heard (Manitoba Agriculture, Food and Rural Development), Cindy Grant (Agriculture […] Read more
Minogue: Farmers sought to get skin in crop input game
Weyburn, Sask. –– Barrie Mann is here to remind about five dozen farmers what their biggest farm expense is. And what he’s proposing to them at this meeting Thursday is a way of “allowing the profits from fertilizer to go back in your bank account.” Most of these same farmers were on hand in October […] Read more
Navigating canola organizations
A quick summary of provincial and national organizations
In past columns I’ve written about research levies and wheat industry associations. Today: canola. You might be asking, “Why are there so many organizations with ‘canola’ in their name?” Here’s a quick summary. Provincial canola organizations If you want to get involved in canola research and policy, start by paying attention to your local provincial […] Read more
Taking research inventory
Last month the Western Grains Research Foundation released a new report. “Fertile Ground: Agronomic Research Capacity in Western Canada” is the result of a lot of surveys conducted by the Edmonton-based consulting firm, Toma and Bouma Management Consultants. The WGRF funded this study to take a snapshot of the current state of Prairie agronomic research. […] Read more
Ten things to know about grain contracts
Cheryl Mayer explains 10 steps to better understanding and profiting from your grain contracts
In a 2013 study, Jared Carlberg, a professor at the University of Manitoba, found that only 17 per cent of farmers read their entire grain contracts. This matters. How can we know whether or not we’re getting a good deal if we don’t know the details in the documents we’re signing? At a session at […] Read more
Cyber-Savvy Farmer
