Reading Time: 3 minutes Glacier FarmMedia – Manitoba’s ag sector is trying to hold the line against big yield-killing threats like waterhemp and Palmer amaranth. Unfortunately, the number of municipalities where waterhemp has been found just grew by two. “Waterhemp and Palmer amaranth are Tier 1 weeds regulated under the Noxious Weeds Act. They must be destroyed when they’re found,” said Manitoba Agriculture weed extension specialist […] Read more

Waterhemp on the rise
Manitoba’s list of affected municipalities keeps growing

Saskatchewan to license, limit wild boar farming
Moratorium placed on any new farms
Reading Time: 2 minutes Saskatchewan is tightening its rules on wild boar farming, including a moratorium on any new farms, in a renewed bid to keep the province’s feral pig population in check. The provincial ag ministry announced the moratorium Wednesday and said it’s “developing regulations for licensing existing commercial wild boar farms.” Regulations for wild boar and feral […] Read more

Ontario moves to phase out wild boar farming
Province, feds fund swine fever defense plans
Reading Time: 2 minutes Hoping to improve its odds against African swine fever ever getting a toehold in Canada’s hog herds, Ontario plans to regulate Eurasian wild boar as an invasive species starting in the new year. To that end, the province is making funding available to farmers who actively breed and raise wild boar to “shift to other […] Read more

U.S. training ag staff to track, trap, kill ‘murder hornets’
Invasive species remains threat to bees, honey producers
Reading Time: 2 minutes Blaine, Wash. | Reuters — The first Asian giant hornet nest of the year has been found in Washington state, and plans are being developed to eradicate it, likely next week, the state’s agriculture department said on Thursday. The so-called stinging “murder hornets,” the world’s largest hornets, can grow to five centimetres in length and […] Read more

Two more ‘murder hornets’ turn up on B.C. mainland
One nest found last month in neighbouring U.S. town
Reading Time: 2 minutes Beekeepers in British Columbia’s Fraser Valley and Lower Mainland are asked to keep an eye out for so-called “murder hornets” after two were found in the region within a week. A single Asian giant hornet was found Saturday at Aldergrove, near the intersection of Fraser Highway and Highway 13 — about five km from where […] Read more

Pest Patrol: How accurate are plant identification apps when it comes to weeds?
#PestPatrol with Mike Cowbrough, OMAFRA
Reading Time: 2 minutes Recommendations for plant identification apps were recently making the rounds on social media. Of course it would be nice to accurately identify an unknown weed in your field by taking a picture instead of sending it to an “expert” or a diagnostic lab. However, many of the top-rated plant identification apps are not particularly accurate […] Read more

More ‘murder hornets’ found in B.C., Washington
Findings suggest some were able to overwinter
Reading Time: 3 minutes Reuters/Staff — Officials in British Columbia and Washington state have confirmed new sightings of the Asian giant hornet, dubbed the “murder hornet,” indicating the invasive, predatory insect survived the winter in the Vancouver area and U.S. Pacific Northwest. The stinging hornet, whose queens can grow as large as 2-1/2 inches in length, could potentially pose […] Read more

Farming insects may solve one problem, create others
Reading Time: 2 minutes Rome | Thomson Reuters Foundation — Insects have great potential as an alternative source of protein, but further research is urgently needed before mass production begins in order to avoid environmental disaster, Swedish researchers warned Monday. There is currently an “overwhelming lack of knowledge” on basic questions such as suitable species, their housing and feed […] Read more

PHOTOS: Pest Patrol: Reining in dog strangling vine
#PestPatrol with Mike Cowbrough, OMAFRA
Reading Time: 2 minutes Q: I’m seeing a weed called dog strangling vine along roadsides, in woodlots and creeping into agricultural fields. It seems quite invasive. How do I get rid of it? A: Your suspicions are correct. Dog strangling vine is invasive and is listed as a noxious weed under the Ontario Weed Control Act, and regulated as […] Read more

Beneficial insects can fight in your corner, if you let them
A new field guide will be available both electronically and in print in time for you to use through the upcoming crop year
Reading Time: 6 minutes Farmers are only hurting themselves if they aren’t giving a helping hand to the natural allies in the fields that can assist them in controlling pests. Nature not only provides, as the old proverb says. Research proves that it also pays. In fact, new research even tells us how much it pays. Natural pest suppression […] Read more