Reading Time: 4 minutes Today’s agriculture isn’t your grandmother’s agriculture. While we still work the soil and practise animal husbandry, today we do so in wonderful ways that past generations could never imagine. From lasers and GPS to genomics and drones, agriculture has become a hotbed of innovation. Nor is ag innovation the exclusive domain of the major multinational […] Read more
Six questions for the ag entrepreneurs
So you’ve got an idea that might make a great new product or service. Should you invest in it?
Stacked deck
Weeds have put millions of years of evolutionary experience to work against just a handful of weed killing chemicals. The results are predictable
Reading Time: 5 minutes In the mid 1990s a team of computer engineers came up with a new way to plug devices into computers and called it a USB port. It was different from the old ports so it wasn’t compatible with older peripherals and they became useless. Computer companies called this progress but many users called it a […] Read more
Phosphate only in seed row
Fertilizer burn in the seed row causes hidden and costly damage in many canola fields, contributing to lower seed survival. Phosphorus is the only nutrient that shows any net benefit in the seed row with canola when soil levels are low
Reading Time: 4 minutes Canola is very sensitive to seed-placed fertilizer. We don’t know what percentage of canola seeds are lost to fertilizer burn or toxicity, given that many factors influence seed mortality, but generally, the more fertilizer placed with the seed, the more seeds and seedlings that will die. “Non-viable seeds and seedlings are a lost opportunity of […] Read more
Extensive SCN survey shows numbers still climb
The collaborative study continues to identify heavier infestations and more spread of the disease
Reading Time: 4 minutes Soybean cyst nematode was first identified in Ontario in 1988, and since then it has spread through much of the province. Despite nearly three decades of experience with this pest, Ontario is still a relative newcomer compared to places like Tennessee, with its history dating back to the 1950s. Other states such as Illinois and […] Read more
Not just for the birds
Promising new research is exploring a whole new human food market for canary seed, a minor crop that Canada’s farmers play a major role in
Reading Time: 4 minutes Did you know that Canada is the world’s largest supplier of canary seed? “Canada accounts for 75 per cent of the world trade in canary seed, with exports worth $50 to $90 million annually,” says Pierre Hucl, a professor in the department of plant sciences and crop development centre at at the University of Saskatchewan. […] Read more
Abundant choices
There’s no shortage of crop protection choices for just about any problem a grower might face in the 2014 season, including a number of new options registered in time for this spring
Reading Time: 4 minutes We are a fortunate lot, here in Canada, when it comes to controlling pests in our crops. We have access to literally hundreds of products which can be used alone or in tank mixes to control just about any weed, insect, or disease we might encounter in any crop we are likely to grow. In […] Read more
Pest Patrol
A handy acronym can help you remember what gets added during tank mixing
Reading Time: < 1 minute What is the proper order for tank mixing pesticides? If a tank mix is listed on a pesticide label, there will be specific mixing instructions. However, the Pest Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA) does permit the application of unlabelled tank mixtures if the pesticides are registered on the target crop and are being applied within their […] Read more
Hard wired
Several factors are encouraging the return of an old pest enemy — the wireworm group — that had long been a thing of the past for Canadian farmers
Reading Time: 5 minutes They live quietly in your fields for as long as two or three seasons, silently but slowly damaging your crops and undermining your farm’s profitability. Their top hosts are grassy crops such as corn, but they’ve even been known to feed on potatoes, scarring the tubers with long feeding holes. Wireworms damage grassy plants in […] Read more
Into the corners
There’s no polite way to say it — our modern crop varieties are very productive, well-bred wimps
Reading Time: 6 minutes Hockey legend Gordie Howe was born on the Canadian prairies in Floral, Sask., on the outskirts of Saskatoon. Tough and scrappy, he dominated along the boards and in the corners where his legendary elbows secured his space and made him a formidable competitor. At one point Canadian farmers fielded entire teams made up of those […] Read more
Help wanted
Farmers can’t wait 10 years to build a workforce. In this first of a two-part series, we look at why the need is so urgent
Reading Time: 6 minutes The crisis is already here, and farmers are caught in the jaws of two ugly steel traps. Not only is it getting harder and harder for farmers to find the employees they need for their own farms, but the companies that farmers rely on — ranging from seed and chemical companies to equipment makers — […] Read more
A message from April Stewart, Country Guide's Associate Editor
