Brown mustard. (Peggy Greb photo courtesy ARS/USDA)

Mustard acres feeling squeeze from canola

CNS Canada –– Following the largest mustard crop in more than a decade in 2016, supply/demand fundamentals are expected to spur a reduction in Canadian mustard seedings in 2017. However, with more and more cropland moving into canola, mustard acreage increases may be limited in future years when supplies are tight again. After growing the […] Read more

This is a narrow-leaved hawk’s beard. While the leaves are slightly lobed, they are narrow.

Narrow-leaved hawk’s beard travelling

This noxious weed is spreading outside of northwest Sask. 
and the Alta. border

Up until recently, narrow-leaved hawk’s beard was mostly found in northwest Saskatchewan and along the Alberta border. A 2014-15 weed survey has revealed that the weed has spread to areas outside of these traditional hotspots. Identification and control can both be difficult. For this reason, it is advised that growers — especially those who live in non-traditional hotspots — take […] Read more


Cleavers can have a negative impact on canola and pulse crops.

Controlling cleavers without quinclorac

With quinclorac off of the herbicide menu, farmers will need to use other tools

Last spring, the Western Grains Elevator Association (WGEA) and the Canadian Oilseed Processors Association (COPA) advised growers that they would not accept quinclorac-treated canola grown and harvested in 2016. The reason for this announcement was to make sure that grain shipped to customers in other countries remains in compliance with regards to Maximum Residue Limits […] Read more

Blooming rapeseed field at sunset

Back to the agronomy basics in canola

Experts advise growers to focus on quality seed and nitrogen before less conventional inputs

Canola growers have been asking agronomists questions about promoted products. Do they work? And if so, are they worth the additional cost? Two researchers, Murray Hartman, oilseed specialist with Alberta Agriculture and Forestry, and Neil Harker, research scientist, weed ecology and crop management, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, conducted a study to test the inputs that […] Read more


Once you suspect resistance, sending the seed for testing can confirm or allay your fears.

Are there resistant weeds in your fields?

The answer to this question is probably yes. Testing can give you a definite answer

Every season more farmers face the challenge of herbicide-resistant weeds. “Herbicide resistance is the genetic capacity of a weed population to survive a herbicide treatment that, under normal use conditions, would effectively control that weed population,” said Dr. Jeanette Gaultier, weed specialist with Manitoba Agriculture. It’s sometimes described as evolution happening at an accelerated pace […] Read more

A high clearance sprayer on a field in a prairie landscape

Spraying your fungicide in “the zone”

With Bayer’s new “Zone Spray,” farmers can skip the fungicide in some parts of the field

If Warren Bills has his way, farmers will have a better way to forecast sclerotinia than the old wet boots and weather test. “We believe there is a better way to manage the risk of that disease and the returns growers get when they spray,” Bills told agronomists and industry at Bayer’s Ag Summit in […] Read more


Agriculture Canada researcher Bob Blackshaw, right, with Univeristy of Alberta master’s student Mat Vercaigne talk to producers during a field day in Lethbridge on “forgotten” herbicides that can help manage resistance.

Old, new products deliver multi-modes of action

The challenge is to hit weeds with two or more active ingredients to reduce resistance

Old chemistry, new formulations, multiple modes of action — these are all elements farmers can include in their weed control toolbox heading into 2017, say weed researchers and crop protection specialists. One of the most important elements these days for either preventing or managing herbicide resistance in weeds is to approach control with multiple modes […] Read more

Cleavers can be tricky because they are both a spring and winter annual.

Timing is key to whipping weeds

It’s easiest to kill weeds when they’re actively growing. Make sure you know when that is

Whether you’re telling a joke or treating a weed, timing is critical. And as anyone who has failed at weed control will confirm, it’s no laughing matter. Once you let weeds gain a foothold they can soon get out of hand, so it’s crucial to identify the life cycle of the weeds in your field […] Read more


leafy spurge

Training cattle to eat leafy spurge

With leafy spurge acres spreading, it’s time to bring on some new tactics

There’s a reason why “spurge” rhymes with “scourge.” The last economic impact analysis of the noxious weed in Manitoba, which came out in 2010, concluded that leafy spurge costs the province $40.2 million every year due to lost grazing capacity, costs of chemical controls on roadsides and indirect costs. In 2010, there were roughly 1.2 […] Read more

Palmer amaranth.

Stem Shock: new herbicide in development

A new mode of action based on RNA could soon be killing a weed near you

It’s been over 20 years since chemical companies released a new mode of action in herbicides. But a B.C.-based company is cooking up a whole new type of herbicide. “We use a different mode of action for the actual killing of the plants than a lot of traditional herbicides. Most herbicides, by reducing the specific […] Read more