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Tag Archives Copper deficiency

About 50 per cent of rye grown in Prairie Canada is estimated to come from newer hybrids first grown in 2014.
Cereals, Columns, Practical Tips

Ergot-free rye production

Practical Research: Growing it in soils with adequate levels of available copper is one way to go

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Yes, it can be done, by following these directions. Of course, there will be skeptics, but I am dealing with the facts and not concocted opinions. First of all, if you read my previous articles in Grainews, you will come to the factual opinion that wheat, barley and oats undergo closed pollination — that is, […] Read more
ergot in barley
Columns, Crops, Practical Tips

Let’s close the circuit on what leads to ergot

Practical Research: The solution to the problem for wheat, barley and oat growers is very well documented

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“Ergot risk threatens Man., less severe elsewhere.” This title appeared in The Western Producer, Aug. 22, 2024. Let’s put that headline in proper perspective. For some reason there are agricultural specialists on the Canadian Prairies and in some states who cannot face actual facts. When you have specialists who refer to wheat as a self-pollinated […] Read more
Here we see a drone’s-eye view of an abandoned Canadian peat moss farm in dry summer conditions.
Columns, Crops, Practical Tips

Peatland farming, the Prairies’ best-kept secret

Practical Research: Improving these lands' copper fertility could potentially pay significant dividends

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In 1981, I heard a discussion on micronutrients in crop production by the late Jerry Stoller. He talked about the need to pay attention to the micronutrient needs of crops, because just like macronutrients — nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium and sulphur — they can be depleted over time on even the best cropland. Stoller also said […] Read more
Ergot is best recognized in the field as black or dark purple sclerotia sticking out of a floret.
Columns, Crops, Practical Tips

How a worldwide destructive cereal disease problem was solved in Alberta

In the story of ergot in wheat, barley and oats, the answer was simply 'copper'

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When I was first hired by Alberta Agriculture as a diagnostic plant pathologist, I was told I would be primarily responsible for barley, oat, wheat and canola diseases. I was also asked to head up the provincial control program for bacterial ring rot of potato (BRR). The BRR program, run in partnership with the federal […] Read more
These photos, taken on August 15 just west of Edmonton, show classic copper deficiency. The field is a sandy loam soil with five to six per cent organic matter. The roadway, built about 10 years ago, has shoulders made up from deep-dug clay loam piled onto the field from the ditch. This clay loam is low in organic matter, probably one to two per cent or less, but high in available copper (see more below, including video).
Cereals, Columns, Crops

Identifying copper deficiency in wheat

Ieuan Evans looks at 2019 growing conditions, including areas where copper levels are low


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In early August in central Alberta I was still seeing yellow fields of canola. Honeybees and mosquitoes were having an extended nectar flowing season. I will stick my neck out as usual and make a few observations and prophecies across the Western Prairies. Crops are late in the northern part of the Western Prairies, but […] Read more
When we have years with lots of ergots, we have higher levels of wheat midge.
Cereals, Crops

Don’t blame ergot on the weather

Copper deficiency leads to the development of many diseases in cereal crops

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If you’re a pedigreed seed grower and you’ve discovered that one of your seed fields, either wheat or barley, is infested with ergot, you have a problem but it’s not what most, if not all of you think. Don’t blame it on a common diagnosis of cold, wet growing conditions. It’s more likely caused by […] Read more
Cows deficient in copper can be poor milkers, have chronic health issues, and have difficulty getting bred. But it is a condition that’s fairly easy to correct.
Cattleman’s Corner

Copper critical for pre-calving cows

It doesn’t take much to correct a deficiency so watch for symptoms

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Recently, I gave a dinner presentation to a group of beef producers outlining the importance of feeding a good mineral program to pre-calving cows. Afterward, I was surprised by the number of questions about the possibility of a copper deficiency in their beef cattle. With calving season underway or soon to start, we all agreed […] Read more
sheep
Cattleman’s Corner, Sheep/Goats

The fine balance of managing copper

Sheep and goats and cattle do not have the same copper needs

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We have had several new producers this winter trying to convince us it just isn’t true that sheep cannot be fed copper. Apparently they are doing it without any problems. Since we are coming into lambing season it is a good time to address these ideas. It needs to be clear that sheep and goats […] Read more

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