GFM Network News

More News →

Tag Archives swede midge

A canola flower midge larva inside a galled flower. Larvae are initially white in colour and turn a darker yellow colour as they feed and develop.
Crops, Features

Canola flower midge damage less severe than swede midge

Newly discovered species shouldn’t worry canola producers

By
Swede midge is a devastating insect pest of canola and related cruciferous vegetables and is a problem in Eastern Canada. In North America, swede midge was first noticed in Ontario and the eastern United States. It has affected canola production in Eastern Canada, in some cases leading to failed crops. Swede midge (Contarinia nasturtii) is […] Read more
Swede midge larvae.
Crops, Features

Midge scouting in canola

By
Scouting is an important component of management. If you don’t know what’s in your field, you can’t evaluate what control measures to use. Yearly scouting is needed to assess what pests exist in fields, as populations don’t always remain constant. For example, in 2016 there were higher counts of cutworm but lower incidence of Bertha […] Read more
Midge larvae inside a canola floret. Federal researchers have documented a new midge species in Prairie canola that differs significantly from the swede midge it was believed to be. (AAFC photo by Julie Soroka from CanolaWatch.org)
Canola, Crops

Anonymous midge appears in Prairie canola

By ,
Canola crops in northeastern Saskatchewan and east-central Alberta have run up against a potential pest problem so new it doesn’t yet have a name. Researchers with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, the University of Guelph and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency have reported a new species of midge damaging canola crops in those areas. The species […] Read more
swede midge in different stages of development
Crops, Features

Swede midge life cycle

Understanding the swede midge’s life cycle is the first 
step on the way to controlling this new pest

By
Swede midge adults emerge from mid-May to mid-June from pupae that have overwintered in the soil in cocoons. At least, this is the experience in Ontario — a great deal of research is still required to understand the insect and its life cycle nuances in Saskatchewan. The adult is a very small, delicate, light- brown/grey […] Read more
canola plant
Canola, Crops, Features

Swede Midge: a potential ‘perfect storm’

There’s a new canola pest in town. 
It’s hard to spot and hard to control, 
but the damage it causes is easy to detect

By
Look up “perfect storm” in Wikipedia and you will see it is used to describe an event where a combination of circumstances will aggravate a situation drastically — and in a bad way. Such is the potential situation with an up-to-now unknown and non-native pest of cruciferous plants — swede midge. “This pest displays a […] Read more

AgCanadaTV

AGCanadaTV: In case you missed it; your national ag news recap for Sept. 5, 2025

Sponsored By:
More Videos →

Cyber-Savvy Farmer

Glacier Farmmedia Podcast

Latest Market News

More Market News →