soil Archives - Page 8 of 27

Soil variability changes nutrition requirements

Q & A with an expert

By Brianna Lummerding September 13, 2021

Q: Can field performance be enhanced by a better understanding of the soil and nutrition placement? A: Soil nutrition in a field can be looked at like a blanket — not the boring, white, duvet-type of blanket, but a more unique quilt with diversity in patterns and colours. This soil variability in the field changes […] Read more

This photo was taken July 23, 2021. Corn, carrots and tomatoes have been watered often. The zucchini in the foreground received almost no extra water above the 1.75 inches of rain on May 24 and 0.85 inches on June 10. No rain of any account since then. All squash types have tremendous root systems.

Columns, Crops

Les Henry: The joys of subsoil moisture. 2021 credited to snow

This year has been a major learning curve for me

By Les Henry September 2, 2021

Regular readers will recall my earlier columns – ‘A snow job: Part 1‘ and ‘A snow job: Part 2‘ – dealt with snow as a contributor to 2021 crops. This year has been a major learning curve for me on the possible benefits of snow to grow a crop. My dad always said, “Give me […] Read more

One agronomist says there are three questions that should be addressed when it comes to fall fertilization goals, especially in the dry year growers just experienced.

Crops, Features

The benefits of zone soil sampling after a dry season

Maximize the efficiency of your fall fertilizer applications

By Mark Halsall August 31, 2021

Prairie farmers have learned to temper their yield expectations after a dry growing season, especially in a year like this when many areas started with little to no soil moisture reserves. Reduced crop growth is a clear symptom of drought but what isn’t so obvious is what’s happening — or rather, what’s not happening — […] Read more

Crops, News

After a dry growing season

While it’s definitely a disappointing and, for some, disastrous year, it’s no time to forget about the soil — farmers are urged to think about soil and nutrient management practices this fall

By Lee Hart August 24, 2021

With soil moisture conditions this August across virtually all of western Canadian farmland ranging from abnormally dry to beyond description, it might seem there isn’t much to be done to improve soil health and management until it rains. However, while it may seem counterintuitive, agronomists and soil specialists alike say don’t forget about soil testing […] Read more

A 3-D illustration of Bacillus anthracis bacteria. (Dr_Microbe/iStock/Getty Images)

Livestock, Pasture, Sheep/Goats, Weather

Anthrax kills southeastern Saskatchewan sheep

Spores forced up by changes in soil moisture

By Dave Bedard, GFM Network News July 10, 2021

Dramatic shifts in soil moisture are again bringing anthrax spores to the surface on the Prairies, this time in a southeastern Saskatchewan sheep pasture. Lab results on Wednesday confirmed anthrax as the cause of death of one animal in a flock of sheep in the R.M. of South Qu’Appelle, about 50 km east of Regina, […] Read more

Crops, Machinery

AGI to buy into soil microbe breeding firm

Machinery maker to take minority stake in MyLand

By Dave Bedard, GFM Network News June 15, 2021

A U.S. company ramping up a system to harvest, reproduce and restore beneficial microbes from a field’s own soils, as a way to restore peak fertility, expects to get backing soon from a Canadian farm equipment maker. Winnipeg-based Ag Growth International (AGI) said Monday it has signed a conditional letter of intent with Phoenix-based MyLand […] Read more

Flea beetle. (Photo courtesy Canola Council of Canada)

Canola, Crops, Weather

Forecast, flea beetles complicate canola timing

Dry conditions make ideal seeding time difficult to peg

By Alexis Stockford, GFM Network News May 15, 2021

Drought conditions, and the odds of more to come, have some Prairie canola growers pondering when to roll the dice on seeding, if they want to do more than feed the flea beetles. Small-seeded crops, such as canola, have garnered particular concern from agronomists and producers worried about germination, given power dry topsoil across much […] Read more

An eight-inch-wide strip of tillage in a field with heavy corn residue.

Features

Several benefits come with an eight-inch-wide strip of tillage

By Lee Hart May 4, 2021

Western Canadian row crop farmers Dean Toews in southern Manitoba and John Kolk in southern Alberta have different levels of experience with strip tillage, but both see the value of working up these eight-inch-wide strips of soil in their fields with a range of production and conservation benefits. Toews, who is part of the family […] Read more

Cereals, Crops, Wheat & Chaff

Take these steps early on to prevent disease

Q & A with an expert

By Lane Blanke April 28, 2021

Q: How can I decrease the risk of early-season disease in cereal crops? A: Seeding can be a stressful time of year for many growers. It is the most important operation on any farm, as it can dictate how the entire year will turn out. It’s important for growers to make sound agronomic decisions at […] Read more

Kelly Turkington says farmers who want to get the most out of their disease management tools should apply the same principles behind 4R nutrient stewardship to disease management.

Crops, Features

The 4Rs of disease management

How to get the most out of your disease management tools

By Melanie Epp April 26, 2021

Some say life success is about being in the right place at the right time. These are part of the guiding principle behind 4R nutrient stewardship, which farmers know well. Kelly Turkington, an AAFC pathology research scientist based in Lacombe, Alta., said the same principles can be applied to disease management. Speaking at the Farm […] Read more

GFM Network News

U.S. livestock: Cattle, hog futures rise on first WASDE since September

U.S. export sales include only small soybean business to China

U.S. corn and soybean yields revised down by USDA

Tag Archives soil