High seed costs and low grain prices are renewing debate over planters in canola. Experts weigh seed savings, fertilizer limits and agronomic trade-offs.
Tag Archives Alberta
Seed costs spark new interest in planters for canola
Savings on seed are clear, but zero till and fertilizer logistics remain big questions
Prairie forecast: A temperature rollercoaster and the possibility of snow
Prairie forecast covering October 8 to 15, 2025. The Prairies may be in for a prolonged battle between warm and cold air before winter sets in. This could bring lots of rain or snow.
Benchmarking soil health in Alberta
Researchers at the Chinook Applied Research Association’s Soil Health Lab have adapted a soil health assessment from Cornell University to evaluate Alberta soils
Part 2 of 2: New analyses provide test results with handy scores that assess soil using a simple format, and make it easy for Alberta farmers to spot where an intervention or practice change might have the biggest effect.
Good weather pushes Alberta harvest along
Thanks to a stretch of good weather, Alberta farmers advanced their harvest 12 points during the week ended Sept. 29 to 89 per cent complete. The Alberta agriculture department said that’s seven points above the five-year average.
Prairie forecast: Transition from warm to cool brings chances for rain
The big question leading into this forecast period is — just how long will the summery temperatures will continue? After all we are now into October.
Powdery mildew can be combine fire risk
Dust from the disease can ignite to cause combine fires; producers advised to frequently clean their equipment
Depending on the crop, powdery mildew may not be much of a yield killer for grain growers — but dust from the fungal disease can build up to cause fires in combines.
Alberta Crop Report: Harvest more than three-quarters finished
Alberta’s provincial harvest as of Sept. 23, 2025 was 78 per cent complete, said the province’s weekly crop report.
Prairie forecast: Looks like summer weather
Highlights: We appear to be in a fairly predictable weather pattern as the overall weather picture has been pretty good. We saw upper-level ridging last week bring average to above average temperatures across the Prairies. The forecasted area of low pressure over the eastern Prairies materialized as forecasted. As often typical with upper-level lows, the […] Read more
Pulse Weekly: More peas, lentils in Alberta
As Statistics Canada projected Alberta to see larger harvests of dry peas and lentils in 2025/26, the Alberta Pulse Growers offered their views as to why.
Measuring the components of healthy soil in Alberta
Part 1 of 2: Soil health more than just its chemical properties, according to the Alberta Soil Health Benchmark Report
The data Prairie farmers get from chemical analysis of soils are necessary to develop a field fertility program — but as an Alberta program shows, those data don’t tell the whole story needed to assess soil health.
Cyber-Savvy Farmer
