wildfire smoke over cattle grazing outside calgary 2023

What we know about how wildfire smoke affects Prairie crops

Impacts depend on smoke quantity, plant progress, surrounding weather conditions

With nearly 100 active wildfires across the three Prairie provinces at this writing, farmers don’t have to go far to see and feel the effects of smoke in the atmosphere — but what this year’s crops will experience is a more complicated matter. If you’ve got time for some reading right now, here we’ve gathered […] Read more

Proven Seed silage corn plot

Corn’s amazing nature

Practical Research: The fusarium we see in small cereal grains is the anamorph of the pink mould seen in corn

Consider that if you grow corn after wheat or vice versa and have a wet summer or fall, be prepared for possible outbreaks of pink mould/fusarium head blight in either crop in such a rotation.








Developed by Upside Robotics of Waterloo, Ont., this small robot is designed to work continuously in a group, travelling between 30-inch corn rows, to apply in-season fertilizer.

Beethoven takes to the field

Small robots from Upside Robotics work in a swarm to fertilize corn crops

Glacier FarmMedia — A pint-sized robot is set to undergo wider field trials next year in Ontario corn crops. At only 24 inches wide, the robot is designed to travel between 30-inch corn rows in crops and apply in-season fertilizer. With a number of them working 24 hours a day in groups called swarms, they […] Read more

DJ Wassenaar (left) and business partner Matt Bergman have developed a diversified farming operation at two locations in Ontario, along with off-season non-farm work.

DJ Wassenaar and Matt Bergman

Outstanding Young Farmers: How they put diversity in their rotations, cropping systems, equipment use — and growing regions

Watching for and developing diversification opportunities is certainly an important part of how partners DJ Wassenaar and Matt Bergman built their farm businesses in Ontario. Growing up on their respective farms in southwestern Ontario, they both started farm businesses at an early age. DJ grew up on a beef operation and started a custom farming […] Read more



canola in alabama 2015

Canola in the U.S. South

Practical Research: Introducing massive acreage of new crops in established growing areas can put both new and established crops at risk

Every so often I hear about how farmers in the southern states of the U.S. will soon be growing millions of acres of canola. Of course, what would be grown would be winter canola, since crucifers such as cabbage, collard and broccoli all can survive the Georgia, South Carolina, Alabama and Tennessee winters. They get […] Read more