Grainews field editor Lisa Guenther has been using her free time to write a book. It’s a mystery novel, set in small-town Saskatchewan. She’s finished a draft, printed it out, and now she’s been awarded second place in the Saskatchewan Writers Guild’s annual John V. Hicks contest. If you’re not a Saskatchewan writer, you won’t […] Read more
Moonlighting Grainews staff
New Viterra varieties
Viterra will have two new traditional brown flax varieties on the market in 2014. WestLin 70 is a traditional brown seed flax variety. Its yield is similar to Bethune. Ryan McCann, Viterra Generics’ seed commercialization manager, says “it has a larger seed size compared to other varieties.” WestLin 70 will be available from seed growers, […] Read more
Flax after the reboot
The flax industry has been in turmoil since the fall of 2009, when genetically modified flax seeds were unexpectedly discovered in Canadian flax shipments to the European Union. Although the GM variety, Triffid, had been deregistered in 2001 and all Triffid seed was supposed to have been destroyed, Triffid seeds have been lingering in the […] Read more
Editor’s column
If you let this issue of Grainews sit in a pile on your coffee table for a few weeks before you opened it up, we’re probably still working on harvest here at our farm in southeast Saskatchewan. Things have just been slow this season. We seeded late, and now we’re harvesting late. This is even […] Read more
Editor’s Column
In the last issue of Grainews I wrote about the July 13 hailstorm that swept over most of our land, doing a lot of damage. Since the article was published, we’ve heard from all kinds of friends and acquaintances, passing on condolences and kind wishes. All of the thoughtful comments have definitely made it easier […] Read more
Cleaning for clubroot
Researchers agree that the most effective way to control the spread of clubroot is to sanitize machinery. This is effective, but time consuming
While there is no foolproof way to prevent clubroot from getting into your fields, sanitizing equipment is one way to prevent its spread. Dr. Stephen Srelkov, plant pathologist at the University of Alberta told delegates at the 2013 International Clubroot Workshop in Edmonton that “the largest risk comes from the movement of equipment.” Moving dust […] Read more
The history of clubroot
Researchers at the International Clubroot workshop in Edmonton in June told delegates that clubroot likely had its wild origins in sub-Saharan Africa. Geoffrey Dixon, a professor at the University of Reading in the U.K. said, “It was not until man really started to use the Brassicas that it evolved.” The Brassica group of plants includes canola and […] Read more
Stopping the spread of clubroot
Whether you’re trying to keep clubroot from infecting your soil in the first place, or stop it from moving from field to field, there are strategies to use
By the time you find a patch in your field that’s infected with clubroot, Clint Jurke, agronomy specialist with the Canola Council of Canada told delegates at the International Clubroot Workshop in Edmonton in June, “that disease has probably already been in the field for years.” In fact, it’s likely already spread to the rest […] Read moreGrowing winter wheat for profit
Some farmers see winter wheat as a last resort, or just a way to spread out harvest work. But according to numbers published by the Prairie provincial governments, winter wheat can be one of the most profitable crop options. For many farmers, this comes as a surprise. Paul Thoroughgood, a Ducks Unlimited regional agrologist, says […] Read more
Farmers brought down to earth at Crop Diagnostic School
Farmers, corporate agronomists and crop insurance adjusters attending Saskatchewan Agriculture’s 2013 Crop Diagnostic Schools got a hands-on look at crop issues ranging from nutrient deficiencies to herbicide damage. At the Indian Head Diagnostic School on July 31, Saskatchewan Agriculture research specialists and extension agronomists were on hand to explain in-field demonstrations maintained by Indian Head […] Read more
Cyber-Savvy Farmer
