How to prevent a clubroot catastrophe

How to prevent a clubroot catastrophe

Some recommendations for all scenarios

The mentality amongst some of our Prairie canola growers is, “I’ll just wait until clubroot shows up and then I will seed a resistant variety.” Big mistake! Canola growers whose croplands are free of this destructive disease should be seeding resistant canola varieties right away. Yes, this year. Before clubroot shows up. I presently handle […] Read more


The affected canola plants had parts of their stems pinched off and were kinked over about six inches from the top. Symptomatic plants and others around them also had purpling leaves.

Crop advisor casebook: Why the deformed canola and purpling leaves?

A Crop Advisor's Solution from the March 9, 2021 issue of Grainews

In mid-July, I received a call from Carl, a grain farmer located near Onoway, Alta., who was concerned about disfigured canola plants in one of his fields. “It’s not a disaster yet and it seems to be happening in just one field, but I’d like to solve the issue before it gets any worse,” he […] Read more

ICE May 2021 canola (candlesticks) with 30-day moving average (green line) and CBOT May 2021 soyoil (yellow line). (Barchart)

ICE weekly outlook: Canola’s correction likely short-lived given tight supplies

MarketsFarm — The ICE Futures canola market ran into a profit-taking correction on Wednesday, backing away from recently-hit contract highs. While a further correction is possible, the underlying fundamentals remain supportive and canola is expected to retain its relative strength to other oilseeds. “The market needs bullish fuel, but it’s just not getting any,” said […] Read more


Sclerotinia stem rot leaf lesion forming from an infected canola petal.

How to manage sclerotinia stem rot in canola

Disease risk comes down to moisture

Sclerotinia stem rot is one of the most destructive diseases in canola. The fungus can cause up to 50 per cent yield loss. From year to year, region to region, and field to field, occurrence and severity are extremely variable. Foliar fungicides remain the main source of control. Canola Council of Canada agronomy director, Clint […] Read more

How to reach 52 bushels per acre of canola

How to reach 52 bushels per acre of canola

Tips to take you beyond common management practices to maximize canola yields

Canadian canola yields have increased substantially over the last few decades. In the early 2000s, the five-year average was 25.3 bushels per acre. By 2010, that had risen to 33 bu/ac. Today, it’s about 41 bu/ac. While the upward trend is very positive, yield has been fairly flat for the last five years due — […] Read more


ICE May 2021 canola with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

ICE weekly outlook: Canola back where it started

Day-to-day movements seen as tough to predict

MarketsFarm — ICE canola futures are pretty much back where they were a week ago after losing ground, only to recover by small — and then strong — gains. The May canola contract finished at $765.20 per tonne on Friday and closed Wednesday at $767.30. In between, the lowest close for May was $735.20. That […] Read more

ICE March 2021 canola with 20-, 50- and 100-day moving averages. (Barchart)

ICE weekly outlook: Profit-taking to pressure canola

Market appearing overdone

MarketsFarm — ICE Futures canola contracts climbed to record highs during the week ended Wednesday as concerns over tightening old-crop supplies provided support. However, the market was looking overdone to the upside and profit-taking came forward to put some pressure on values. “The traders that are still long are playing the game of forcing the […] Read more


NDVI image of canola variety trials.

Crop advisor casebook: NDVI map conflicts with eye test

A Crop Advisor's Solution from the February 16, 2020 issue of Grainews

It is routine procedure at our office to monitor NDVI satellite images of our canola variety trials using digital ag software. This helps us to react quickly to any problems as well as take note of any differences that may arise between trial treatments over the course of the season. One day in mid-July last […] Read more