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Les Henry: Mourning the loss of the International Plant Nutrition Institute
Columns, Crops

Les Henry: Mourning the loss of the International Plant Nutrition Institute

Information will be lost with the end of this valuable organization

By
To my great disappointment I recently learned of the impending demise of the International Plant Nutrition Institute (IPNI), an organization funded by primary producers of fertilizer products. IPNI was involved in a wide array of activities to further the efficient and effective use of fertilizers to keep farms profitable and to feed the people of […] Read more
The profile shown here is of a black soil where moisture conditions were more favourable and the depths of topsoil were greater. Many of the thick black soils were able to accumulate that level of organic matter because they often have sub irrigation from high water tables.
Columns, Crops

Les Henry: Soils, grassland and bush

Manage your soils based on what’s going on underneath the soil

By
I penned a piece with this same title in 1989. Since then, we have learned some new things about how grassland and bush soils function. In the old days the actual 35 mm slides of the soil profiles had to be sent by snail mail to Winnipeg and the captions were in the paper copy […] Read more
Deep ripping to eliminate a compaction layer should only be done after doing some work to find out exactly how deep that layer goes down in the soil profile.
Equipment, Machinery

Tillage 101: Getting the compaction out

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To till or not to till, that is the question. The question is simple but the answer isn’t. Ask different people for their opinions and you’ll get a variety of answers. The real answer might be “Maybe. But if you do, do it properly.” Grainews spent some time in an Arizona farm field with tillage […] Read more
Holding an Earthworm in Hand
Columns, Crops, Hart Attacks

Don’t underestimate the power of soil bugs

Save money, increase profits by getting billions of little creatures working for you

By
There’s that message again — learning to farm without inputs. It is a pretty compelling concept: being able to grow a crop without $200 or $300 per acre invested in added fertilizer and crop protection products. Is it a myth? Does it work? What are these guys trying to sell me? Kevin Elmy says it works. […] Read more
This almost-robot looking device is the John Deere Field Connects weather station that collects a wide range of environmental data such as rainfall, solar intensity and wind speed. The weather station also ties into the moisture probe which is installed near the steel post at right.
Crops, Features

Are you leaving water on the table?

New app and service gives producers a better handle on moisture

By
Since technology so far can’t make it start or stop raining on dryland farms, it is obviously important to make the most efficient use of moisture that is available during the growing season. But how much moisture do or will you have for that crop? Depending on the year and location, spring seedbed soil moisture can range from […] Read more
The pretty little slough, circled in red, on August 31, 2006.
Columns, Crops

Les Henry: A pretty little slough, a picture story

Sloughs are affected by the underground as well as surface features

By
Be patient. This piece does have a punch line and it does relate to farming — but it comes at the end. Carry on and read. No peeking! In 2007 I was involved in a hydrogeology study of a new subdivision in southeast Saskatoon. The real work was done by an engineering firm who hired […] Read more
Check your soil for herbicide residue
Columns, Crops

Check your soil for herbicide residue

Learn how to conduct plant bioassays to detect potential herbicide residues in your soil

By
Plant bioassays are a simple, inexpensive, accurate and direct method of determining if it is safe to grow crops on land previously treated with known herbicides or on cropland or compost with an unknown history of herbicide use. A bioassay can detect if herbicide or chemical residues are present in the soil or compost at […] Read more
Get the most efficiency from your nitrogen
Crops

Get the most efficiency from your nitrogen

Generally, banding is the most efficient method for reducing nutrient loss

By
If you’re looking for a quick and easy guide to choosing the right placement for your nitrogen application, there isn’t one. Neither is there a one-size-fits-all strategy for timing or rate. There are, however, clear guidelines on how to improve nitrogen efficiency while limiting environmental impact. University of Manitoba soil science professor Don Flaten explains. […] Read more
Cover crop growing after harvest.
Crops, Features

Why didn’t my cover crop work?

Kevin Elmy lists nine potential causes of things that could go wrong when you try growing cover crops on your farm

By
Ever try something and it didn’t work the first time? What’s the next step? Try again doing the same thing, modify the approach or give up? Ideally, getting a mentor or someone with experience to find out what went wrong will help create a successful situation. Or maybe it just doesn’t work. Cover cropping is […] Read more
Sunset in wheat field, late afternoon in wheat field - dusk in the cereal field
Columns, Crops

Copper: For peat’s sake!

Think peaty soil isn’t worth farming? Just add copper to get better results

By
Peat is nature’s natural organic compost. As a field crop amendment, peat has a lower carbon-to-nitrogen ratio (C:N), 60:1, than straw or cattle manure — that’s around 80:1. Canada has 270 million — yes, million — acres of peat lands, making up 25 per cent of the world’s peatland supply. Peat is harvested right across […] Read more

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