herbicide resistant kochia

Kochia tumbling into Prairie pulse crops

Scouting — and testing for herbicide resistance — will be important this spring

Glacier FarmMedia — Concerns about the spread of kochia are growing for Saskatchewan’s pulse producers. Michael Brown, agronomy manager for Saskatchewan Pulse Growers, and Martin Carr, agronomy manager for WinField United, have seen the pesky tumbleweed spread throughout Saskatchewan, Alberta and the United States. The weed is resistant to some herbicides, among them Groups 4, […] Read more

(Adama.com/YouTube)

Broadleaf herbicide formulations set for cereal crops

Corteva, Adama launch new combination products

A combo of Group 4 and 2 actives is Corteva Agriscience’s latest entry for spring and winter wheat and barley growers in the Prairies’ Black and Grey soil zones to use against broadleaf weeds. Extinguish XL, launched in mid-March, is billed as a “pre-formulated, all-in-one application that delivers control of tough weeds like cleavers, dandelion, […] Read more


AAFC’s Breanne Tidemann says kochia (seen here) appears to be spreading to areas of Alberta where it wasn’t seen previously.

Into the weeds: 2024 in preview

Prairie specialists consider which weeds are most likely to succeed as the season proceeds

The past few seasons have been a challenging time for farmers on the Canadian Prairies. Extreme heat, lack of precipitation and steep increases in production costs have caused some sleepless nights for many producers. As if those weren’t enough to contend with, another potential threat to crops will soon rear its ugly head: weeds. Grainews […] Read more

Wild foxtail barley on the edge of a canola field.

Garden seeds lead to problem weeds

The names in the garden catalogues may sound pretty, but the plants are far from that in pastures or fields

Glacier FarmMedia — Manitoba rancher Herman Bouw was casually perusing a gardening seed catalogue when a particular ornamental grass item caught his eye. The plant was listed as “squirrel tail grass,” but Bouw thought it looked awfully similar to a species with a more cursed name on the Prairies. A comparison of scientific names confirmed […] Read more


Planting perennial forages in ditches is recommended to help keep kochia from getting a toehold.

Weed alerts on the southern front

A North Dakota weed expert cautions Prairie farmers about kochia, waterhemp and Palmer amaranth and their evolving herbicide tolerances

Of all the things shared by Prairie farmers on both sides of the Canada-U.S. border, an abiding love of their land, fretting over the weather and a no-nonsense, ‘get ‘er done’ attitude are among those that come to mind. Unfortunately, this also includes weed problems. Weeds know no borders, of course, so when weed trouble […] Read more



A recent study conducted by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada on the use of weed seed control technology at harvest was the first such project to be conducted in Canada.

Weed-fighting tool gets a closer look

A recent AAFC study looked at the effectiveness of harvest weed seed control technology

Mechanical weed seed control at harvest has been around for a while in Australia, but it’s a relatively new technology in Canada and adoption rates remain comparatively low. A recent study conducted in Western Canada looked at the efficacy of that technology and the role it could play in alternative weed control strategies as concerns […] Read more

Crop.zone bills its electric desiccation system as “hybrid herbicide technology.”

Pre-spraying boosts effectiveness of electric weed-killing machine

Crop.zone has partnered with John Deere on a new, wider machine for in-crop weed control

Glacier FarmMedia — German company tested its electric desiccation system on Canadian farms this growing season, as it works to bring weed control through electricity to large-scale operations. Crop.zone is unique in that it combines an application of liquid to the plant at the front of the tractor, and an electric shock at the back, […] Read more


A chickpea and flax intercrop mix on Colin Rosengren’s farm at Midale, Sask.

Cover crops: enough already

The benefits are often 'blown up' while the challenges are understated

Cover crops is a topic with a lot of ink spilled in many farm publications in recent years. Some scribblers seem to imply that a farmer is a laggard and an environmental hazard if she/he is not using cover crops on a regular basis. Cover crops actually include a wide variety of cropping sequences, and […] Read more