The federal government should re-instate efficacy testing for non-fertilizer supplements, says the National Farmers Union.
NFU calls for efficacy testing of non-fertilizer supplements
Biologicals aren’t the silver bullet
The products can be complements, not replacements, for other inputs
Glacier FarmMedia — Biological products have been touted as replacements for synthetic chemistry and fertilizer in crop production, but that may be a false promise. According to one pitch, if farmers add biological X to the soil, they can cut nitrogen rates by 15 pounds per acre. According to another, biological Y can control a […] Read more
Nitrogen-fixing biologicals fall short at field level
Challenges remain for products to achieve their hoped-for potential
Glacier FarmMedia — Dave Franzen is a straight shooter. If he doesn’t know the answer, the North Dakota State University soil scientist will admit it; if he does, he’ll tell you. As an example, in the summer of 2022 researchers from land grant universities across the north-central U.S. studied commercially available, biological nitrogen-fixing products to […] Read more
Ways to improve the microbiome
Scientists consider how we could better support relationships between plants, soil and microbes
Glacier FarmMedia — The hyperbole around biologicals and what they can do for crop production sounds like 10 million crickets in a suburban backyard. There’s a lot of noise around biologicals, and for good reason. Soil contains millions of bacteria, fungi and other microbes that perform vital functions for plants. As a result, global agri-science […] Read more
Farmer interest growing in plant biostimulants
Companies hope to fill an existing 'knowledge gap' about the purpose of these products
Glacier FarmMedia — At 2 p.m. on July 17, Ryan Bonnett and many other people at the Ag In Motion farm show near Langham were seeking a place in the shade. The temperature was around 30 C and the word “hot” came up in most conversations at the show. The afternoon temperature was also on […] Read more
Nutrien buys into biocontrol
How did the seller — oil company Suncor — wind up in crop pest control?
Glacier FarmMedia — Photodynamic inactivation is not a phrase used in everyday conversation, but it could become an effective control of insect and fungal pests in agriculture. “Photodynamic Inactivation (PDI) of micro-organisms using natural photosensitizers has shown itself to be a powerful tool to combat bacteria and fungi (in crops),” says a 2019 paper published […] Read more
Biologicals business Catalera receives funding boost
Vancouver company Catalera BioSolutions, which has ambitions of making biologicals “the future” of crop protection and pest solutions has secured investment from a major player in Canada’s agricultural industry.
Grain commission cancels LSM licence
The Canadian Grain Commission has revoked the licence of LSM Commodities. In a phone message to the Western Producer, a commission spokesperson said the licence was revoked as of 12:01 a.m. July 23.
From AIM: How many flowers in a canola field?
There's no debating the beauty of a canola field in bloom, but it's possible to have a more scientific debate about canola flowers. Such as, how many yellow flowers are there, in a canola field that's one section in size?
Prairie soils’ organic carbon climbing
Data from StatCan and AAFC highlight positive changes made in agriculture since the 1980s
Glacier FarmMedia — For much of the last five years, the federal government has been setting targets for Canadian farmers to reduce nitrous oxide emissions from fertilizer and methane emissions from cattle. The government has provided funding to help producers cut methane and nitrous oxide emissions from primary agriculture, while constantly beating the drumbeat of […] Read more
Cyber-Savvy Farmer
