Treating and not treating alternating strips of pasture with insecticides has been found to keep grasshoppers in check — while helping to maintain populations of the pest’s natural predators.

Reduced-area pest spraying can still hit moving targets

The RAAT method can cut insecticide use in half and still kill most grasshoppers on pasture

Glacier FarmMedia — Grasshoppers, as their name suggests, hop from place to place in grassy fields. Taking advantage of that natural behaviour, University of Wyoming scientists have devised a way to control grasshoppers on pastures with smaller volumes of pesticides. The method is called Reduced Agent and Area Treatments (RAAT), in which farmers apply an […] Read more

When conditions are right, bertha armyworm damage can happen quickly.

Patience pays with bertha armyworm

Experts recommend holding 
the spray until you scout, 
and counting beneficial bugs

Late last summer, a canola field heavily infested with bertha armyworm in western Manitoba created a lot of fuss on Twitter, proving, yet again, just how localized population spikes can be in some areas. While sudden population spikes can cause panic, experts recommend that growers only take measures after they’ve got a good handle on […] Read more


English grain aphids at different life stages. These cereal aphids double their reproductive rate once they start feeding on cereal grain heads.

The new phone app for info on aphids

AAFC’s first smartphone app will help farmers scout and sample for aphids and their predators

Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) is testing a new aphid app in the field this summer, which should be widely available by next growing season. The cereal aphid app is the first smartphone app developed by AAFC, says Dr. Tyler Wist, a federal research scientist based in Saskatoon. It will guide cereal growers and agronomists […] Read more

Black beetles on canola buds.

Want better insect surveys? Here’s how you can help

Provincial entomologists are looking to widen their insect survey networks

Every year provincial entomologists hit the fields, setting pheromone-baited traps and monitoring insect activity. Your help with these projects could improve the information available in your region. Alberta Alberta Agriculture and Forestry insect management specialist Scott Meers relies on growers. “We have large areas to cover, so when we get input from growers and agronomists […] Read more


canola field at 50 per cent bloom

Insecticide rotation for canola growers

The need to rotate herbicides gets lots of attention. It’s also necessary to rotate insecticides

Insecticide rotation is common practice for horticultural growers, particularly potato growers, as a management tool in combatting insecticide resistance. But according to John Gavloski, an entomologist for Manitoba Agriculture, Food and Rural Development, based at Carman, Man., insecticide rotation is important for canola and other field crops as well. “Insecticide rotations are recommended for field […] Read more