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Andrew McGuire says soil organic matter should be concentrated near the soil surface because that’s where it will do the most good.
Crops, Features

Sensible soil health for farmers

Take a problem-solving approach to soil management

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With increasing emphasis on soil health these days, there are lots of different tests and parameters for measuring it. But just how important are they? Perhaps not as important as you think, according to Andrew McGuire, a cropping systems agronomist with the Washington State University extension program. He believes there’s an overemphasis on tests for […] Read more
David Lobb, a U of M soil science professor and researcher, considers soil organic matter and crop yield the two main indicators of soil health. He says soil organic matter levels are vital to crop production. Lobb blames the loss of topsoil and organic matter primarily on erosion.
Crops, News

The biggest bang for your buck? Improve soil organic matter

Soil organic matter is vital for crop production and soil health — here’s what it does, why and how to improve it on hilltops and knolls

By
If you can tackle only one thing on your farm to enhance crop yields, let it be ways to improve soil organic matter. That may be somewhat of an oversimplification considering all of the factors that affect yield, but protecting and, where needed, improving soil organic matter levels may deliver the biggest bang for the […] Read more
Stuart Chutter, product coordinator for Alberta’s Agriculture Financial Services Corporation (AFSC), says research has shown the leading factor to reducing the risk of yield loss on the farm is high soil organic matter. One day, crop insurance rates may reflect that.
News

What’s the relationship between soil organic matter and crop insurance?

Adjusting insurance premiums based on soil quality factors is an idea now being discussed

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This is all just in the thinking stage right now, but the day may come when farms that can demonstrate production practices that maintain high levels of soil organic matter may qualify for reduced crop insurance premiums. It is a concept being pondered right now by Alberta’s crop insurance agency, the Agriculture Financial Services Corporation […] Read more
Maintaining and improving soil organic matter is vital to crop production and soil health. I consider the soil micro-organisms much like a feedlot — I have to think about feeding the soil biology.” – Tim Nerbas.
Crops

Sask. farmer’s soil health approach results in ‘soil armour’

Farmer Tim Nerbas protects his soil with a layer of organic material he calls “soil armour.” He says that and other conservation farming practices to improve soil health on his farm may take time — but it’s worth the wait

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Northwest Saskatchewan farmer Tim Nerbas knows if he does the best job of managing crop production above ground, it is probably providing the most benefit to all activity going on below ground. He doesn’t test to measure the amount of organic matter in the soil on his 4,000-acre grain, oilseed and pulse crop operation near […] Read more
This map shows the soil zones of the Canadian Prairies and the corresponding wheat yields and water use.
Columns, Crops

Les Henry: Palliser’s famous triangle and soil zones of the Prairie provinces

Let's get back to basics

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The map, “Soil Zones of the Canadian Prairies,” in this article is the fold-out frontispiece of Henry’s Handbook of Soil and Water. The soil zones are actually soil climatic zones. The long-term climate is written in the topsoil of the various soil zones. The soil zones have been the framework within which agronomic recommendations have […] Read more
A field with the typical very red clay in Rollo Bay West, P.E.I.
Columns, Crops

Les Henry: Thank you to my readers

Your letters and book orders are excellent learning opportunities and inspiration for my scribbles

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We have received many letters and book orders with kind words, which is a great inspiration to keep scribbling, but it’s often also a chance for learning. In today’s world, it is a simple matter to use Google Earth and take a flyover. In many cases, one can also drop down via street view and […] Read more
File photo of a P.E.I. potato field against the backdrop of the Confederation Bridge. (Onepony/iStock/Getty Images)
Crops, Potatoes

P.E.I. table stock potato exports to U.S. now allowed

New U.S. order replaces previous requirements; seed potatoes still blocked

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Exports of Prince Edward Island table stock potatoes are again officially allowed to enter the mainland United States, after new U.S. entry rules regarding potato wart were published Friday. Canada’s federal Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau said on Twitter that officials with the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) are now preparing to certify exports of eligible […] Read more
soil test
Columns, Crops

How to develop sulphur fertilizer recommendations

Here’s how to take samples, interpret soil test results and more

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In recent Grainews issues, I have discussed developing nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P) and potassium (K) fertilizer recommendations. I will continue with this theme and discuss developing sulphur (S) fertilizer recommendations in this column. Sulphur deficiency was first observed in Alberta more than 90 years ago on grey wooded soils. Over the past 30 years, sulphur […] Read more
Les Henry: A look at soil nitrate-nitrogen
Columns, Crops

Les Henry: A look at soil nitrate-nitrogen

Is there enough residual nitrate-nitrogen in the soil to feed 2022 crops?

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The drought of 2021 and the poor crops as a result have left us wondering what residual nitrate-nitrogen might be present in the soil to feed the 2022 crops. Nitrate in the environment The first thing we must realize is nitrate in the environment is, for the most part, a function of human activity in […] Read more

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