Risk of tetanus in cattle increasing

Risk of tetanus in cattle increasing

Animal Health: Your best approach is to prevent it through vaccination

In the last several years tetanus has most definitely been increasing in incidence across Canada so it is important that producers know what to look for and understand measures to prevent this deadly disease. Tetanus is caused by the bacterium Clostridium Tetani that is the same family of organisms which causes blackleg. This spore-producing bacteria […] Read more

When scouting, pull plants. This photo shows blackleg stem cankers.

The sweet spot for fungicide use

Variety resistance and the level of disease pressure impacts fungicide effectiveness

Early fungicide applications reduce blackleg severity when disease pressure is high and the varieties lack resistance, a researcher told delegates at the International Rapeseed Conference in Saskatoon. But fungicide has little effect when varieties are resistant or moderately resistant, he said. “We need to find kind of a sweet spot with fungicide use,” said Dr. […] Read more


Black discolouration in the stem’s cross section is a sign of blackleg.

Scouting for blackleg in canola

The Canola Council of Canada recommends blackleg scouting a week or two before straight cutting or swathing. Don’t wait more than a week after harvest, the Council advises, or plants may be too decomposed to pick out symptoms. While scouting, pull plants and clip stems below ground level. Black discolouration in the stem’s cross section […] Read more

Uneven ripening was occurring throughout the field. Jim wasn’t sure when to swath.

Crop Advisor’s Casebook: Uneven canola ripening

A Crop Advisor's Solution provided from Grainews' June 10, 2014 issue

It was mid-August when I got a call from Jim, a grain and cattle producer near Warner, Alta. Jim, who rotates cereal, oilseeds and pulse crops on his 3,000 acres of farmland, was having trouble with his canola crop. Swathing in canola needs to occur at the optimum stage of ripening in order to reduce […] Read more


blackleg infection on a canola stem

Does it pay to spray fungicide for blackleg?

When you’re looking to guard your canola against blackleg, does it pay to spray a fungicide? The short answer is yes — especially if you’re running a tight canola-wheat rotation. Short rotations put you at the highest risk of developing a blackleg infection, since the fungus can overwinter on diseased canola stubble year over year […] Read more

(ProvenSeed.ca)

Canola program stacks genes against new clubroot

Rather than send out a canola variety with a single source of resistance against clubroot — especially the disease’s most recent pathotype — Agrium’s CPS division has stacked several sources into the new hybrids it’s sending for testing this summer. Crop Production Services on Monday announced its “next generation” of Argentine canola hybrids shows “high […] Read more


crop sprayer

Better weather information for better spraying decisions?

New technology allows farmers to have their own on-farm weather stations


In my last column, I wrote about how new technology sometimes scares the snot out of me (specifically driverless cars). But I’m not a complete Luddite, or neo-Luddite. I do have an iPhone, apps and all. Some of the apps I use most frequently during the summer are weather-related. I like to check if a […] Read more

combining in the field

Canola rotations are key

Recommended crop rotations lower inoculum levels and risk of disease

Crop rotation is of utmost importance to manage residue and soil-borne diseases, and many insect species,” says Randy Kutcher, cereal and flax pathologist, University of Saskatchewan. Knowing this, it’s surprising that many growers still don’t heed rotation recommendations, especially with the potential for devastating diseases like blackleg. Blackleg is a residue-borne disease, he explains. “Residues […] Read more



barley in hand

Seed decisions rely on location

So you’re about to make one of the most important purchases of next season — your seed. Seed companies work hard to deliver stronger, better products to savvy growers, but what do you really need to know before you make the call? Determining the best-performing genetics for an individual farm is the most important piece […] Read more