Durum in Saskatchewan has been a “complete disaster” for the third year running. That was Bruce Carriere’s grim assessment at the Bayer SeedGrowth Solutions Expo in Saskatoon this spring. Carriere, president of Discovery Seed Labs in Saskatoon, said Saskatchewan durum growers usually have a year carry-over of seed. “They used that last year,” he said. […] Read more
Testing cereal seed before spring seeding
Test results show low quality in cereal seed submitted to labs for 2017 planting
Young cattle producers talk industry future
They are really just beginning their careers, but they're ready for the challenges ahead
As a fifth-generation producer, Chad Hollinger faces some of the same challenges as his great-great grandparents, plus a few new ones. Hollinger, who is in his late 20s, farms with his father and grandfather near Neudorf, Saskatchewan, cropping about 3,700 acres of grain land and running 250 head of commercial and purebred Angus. “Our land […] Read more
Late seeding could see growers “drop peas” from rotations
As many Western Canadian farmers juggle their rotations to fit a tight seeding timetable this spring, one producer has a message: Don’t drop the peas. Vicki Dutton is a seed grower and grain trader with ADM in North Battleford. With fewer farmers signing fall contracts this year, she’s been talking to producers to find out […] Read more
Working with all types of people in ag
Reporter's Notebook: Most people in the ag industry are great to work with. But harassment still happens
Talk to a few people in the agriculture industry, and you’ll likely hear something like this: Agriculture is a great field to work in, largely because there are so many good people in the industry. I think about this a lot. Is it true? In what way is it true? Is agriculture different than other […] Read more
Want to know which bugs are in your field? Try traps
Trapping beneficial beetles can help you see just what’s living on your land
Wondering what types of beneficial insects you have beetling around your fields? Try a ground trap. “It’s nice to know that you’ve got some good guys in there that are eating the bad guys,” said Patty Reid, a research tech with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada. There isn’t an economic threshold for beneficial insects such as […] Read more
New blackleg resistance labels for canola
The canola industry has agreed to voluntarily enhance blackleg resistance labels on canola seed. Seed companies will still use the current R, MR, MS, and S labels. But they will also start adding information indicating which major genes are present in a blackleg-resistant variety. Each blackleg-resistant variety leans heavily on a single major gene for […] Read more
Ed Seidle learns on the job
This on-farm research program generated info about everything from aphanomyces to root rot
How can producers make sure their on-farm trials produce useful results? Or perhaps a better question is whether growers can, or need to, run trials as rigorously as researchers? Most farmers don’t have the time or patience to run the types of on-farm experiments that scientists do, says Ed Seidle. But that doesn’t mean they […] Read more
Mustard is on the menu
There are many ways to use mustard. Smear it on rink burgers and hot dogs. Grind it. Use it in flour. Add it to tuna casserole. “We took it one step further when we looked at mustard components,” says Carol Ann Patterson. “Protein, the oil, the bran itself or the dietary fibre and fibre. Where […] Read more
Leaving your livestock to a farm-sitter
Reporter's Notebook: Before you get on the plane, you're going to have to find someone to feed and watch those cows
How do cattle producers manage to leave for winter holidays if they aren’t working with extended family? It’s a conundrum producers have likely faced since they first domesticated cattle-beasts. Several years ago, while I was still living in Edmonton, I remember hearing about a guy, Frank Campbell, who was setting up a farm-sitting service. Basically […] Read more
Pain management in cattle
Several products are effective, but pay attention to timing
There’s no doubt that some routine procedures such as castration are painful for cattle. Fortunately, researchers are figuring out how producers can mitigate pain with products on the market today. Dr. Eugene Janzen of the University of Calgary Faculty of Veterinary Medicine has been studying pain mitigation in beef cattle for several years. He says […] Read more
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