University of Guelph Archives - Page 2 of 3

Farm it like you’re ‘just’ renting it?

Do farmers look after rented farmland differently than land they own? Should they?

By Angela Lovell September 18, 2017

We’ve all heard the term “drive it like a rental” but could that also apply to farmland? Is a farmer more likely to use conservation practices like no-till or variable rate technology, or apply more fertilizer and/or manure to improve the fertility on land he or she owns than on rented land? In April 2013, […] Read more

This barn will remain, but most of the rest of the facilities will be demolished at the University of Guelph’s Elora Beef Research Station to make way for new beef research buildings. (John Greig photo)

Beef Cattle, Livestock

Guelph gets new beef research facility

By GFM Network News July 6, 2017

The federal and provincial governments and the Beef Farmers of Ontario have all announced funding for buildings and programs at the University of Guelph’s renewed beef research station this week. The funds announced are to help create a completely new cow-calf and heifer research facility next to the current beef research station, and a new […] Read more

English grain aphids at different life stages. These cereal aphids double their reproductive rate once they start feeding on cereal grain heads.

Crops, Features

The new phone app for info on aphids

AAFC’s first smartphone app will help farmers scout and sample for aphids and their predators

By Lisa Guenther May 26, 2017

Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) is testing a new aphid app in the field this summer, which should be widely available by next growing season. The cereal aphid app is the first smartphone app developed by AAFC, says Dr. Tyler Wist, a federal research scientist based in Saskatoon. It will guide cereal growers and agronomists […] Read more

Columns

Despite the headlines, ag does a good job

Hart Attacks: It’s a challenge to produce crops and livestock and manage consumer perception as well

By Lee Hart May 23, 2017

The good name of agriculture has taken a few hits this spring. They don’t necessarily link to Canadian farms, but I’m sure even a global event making headlines has some impact with consumers wondering about what goes on with their food and the environment. First, JBS meat packers in Brazil — the worlds largest meat […] Read more

Animal welfare research is becoming about the emotional state of the animal rather than its health, Dr. Ed Pajor says. (John Greig photo)

Livestock

Greig: Animal welfare research focusing more on emotional states

By GFM Network News May 15, 2017

Animal welfare research is moving beyond identifying what keeps an animal healthy, to focus more on their state of being and their happiness. For years, farmers have justified the way they manage and house animals based on objective measures of their health: disease prevalence, growth rates and feed consumption. Consumer research, however, shows that’s not […] Read more

To date, AAFC’s Dr. Hugh Beckie has not seen Palmer amaranth in the Prairies. However, he says,  “if it did come up it would be through the floodwater in the Red River Valley.”

Crops, Features

Palmer amaranth continues to spread north

Producers should learn to spot the tall, fast-growing  weed before it becomes a problem

By Julienne Isaacs April 17, 2017

Amaranth is extremely nutrient-rich. It was important to the Aztecs, and is still cultivated in South America and Mexico. It germinates easily, grows rapidly and produces huge numbers of seed. But the crop that sustained the Aztec economy famously wreaked havoc on the American cotton industry, and is now affecting corn and soybean producers in […] Read more

Cereals, Crops, Features

Wheat research on the Prairies

A roundup of wheat research that will bring new varieties suited for the Canadian Prairies 

By Angela Lovell March 22, 2017

According to Genome Canada’s website, wheat accounts for 20 per cent of all calories consumed throughout the world, and as global population grows, wheat productivity needs to increase by 1.6 per cent each year. At the same time, climate change is causing temperature and precipitation changes that challenge established patterns. So there is also a need to […] 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 Grainews Staff, GFM Network News January 30, 2017

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

Cattleman’s Corner, Livestock, The Dairy Corner

Dairy Corner: Good starter provides a good start

Make sure the starter has proper nutrients but also great taste

By Peter Vitti November 14, 2016

In recent years, I have seen a lot of pressure on dairy producers to feed more whole milk or milk replacer to their pre-weaned calves. University trials show baby calves fed high levels of milk turn it into superior bodyweight, girth and height at weaning, which make better future-lactating cows. Not to be overshadowed, there […] Read more

The project may look simple from above ground, but underground many sensors and scales take complex soil measures.

Crops

Soil health sensor project largest in North America

By GFM Network News November 10, 2016

A new $2-million soil health research project aims to figure out the impact of different cropping systems on the environment. Research will also be conducted on crop productivity relating to soil health. The result should be new knowledge on productivity of traditional cropping systems versus those with cover crops. The project, at the new Soil […] Read more

Alberta crop conditions improve: report

U.S. grains: Corn sets contract lows on expectations for big US crop

U.S. livestock: Cattle strength continues

GFM Network News