Reading Time: 4 minutes Is that cow cockle or cocklebur? It’s easy to tell when it’s grown so much that it’s already cost you yield, but not so easy when it’s first popping out of the ground. And once you know for sure, what are your control options? Insect control is even trickier. Is that critter eating my crop, […] Read more
Step one: Identify your weed enemy
Step two: Identify the best means to combat it. Here are some ways to help determine the treatments for weeds, insects and diseases
Pest Patrol: Xtend soybeans, spray drift and controlling glyphosate-resistant fleabane
#PestPatrol with Mike Cowbrough, OMAFRA
Reading Time: 2 minutes I want to plant Roundup Ready 2 Xtend soybeans this season to control my glyphosate-resistant Canada fleabane. But I keep hearing about the increased risk of drift with the dicamba-based herbicides. Is this fear mongering, or do I need to pay special attention when applying herbicides containing dicamba? We can learn a lot about the […] Read more
Canada’s competition watchdog clears Syngenta takeover
Reading Time: 3 minutes Canada’s farmers aren’t likely to see less competition for their crop chemical dollars if the owner of Adama Canada buys Syngenta, the Canadian antitrust watchdog has ruled. The Competition Bureau on Tuesday issued a “no action” letter for the takeover of Syngenta by China National Chemical Corp. (ChemChina), saying the deal is “unlikely to result […] Read more
Pest Patrol: Have genetically engineered (GE) crops resulted in more herbicide-resistant weeds in Ontario?
#PestPatrol with Mike Cowbrough, OMAFRA
Reading Time: 2 minutes There is a belief that the increased acreage planted to genetically engineered (GE) crops has led to an increase in herbicide-resistant weeds. However, results from the University of Guelph’s herbicide-resistant weed-testing laboratory indicate otherwise. Table 1 (below) summarizes the number of species confirmed as resistant to common herbicides used in Ontario during the past 40 […] Read more
The other glyphosate ‘resistance’
Who are the Canadian activists who are pushing for a glyphosate ban, and why are they so convinced they’re right?
Reading Time: 8 minutes In the September issue of Country Guide I wrote about the Avaaz movement’s effort to ban glyphosate in “The Target is Glyphosate“. As I reported then, if you haven’t heard of Avaaz, you should go to its website today. The prestigious Guardian newspaper says Avaaz (whose name means “voice” in several European languages) is the […] Read more
Pest Patrol: What is the best strategy for managing perennial sow thistle?
#PestPatrol with Mike Cowbrough, OMAFRA
Reading Time: 3 minutes With lateral roots that go as deep as two metres and seed production approaching 10,000 per plant, perennial sow thistle is extremely difficult to eradicate. Its impact can be minimized, however. Management that reduces top growth will lower seed production and root mass over time. But be forewarned. If you decide to take a year […] Read more
New seed treatment in a different class
A new mode of action could help confound several pests in eastern Canadian corn
Reading Time: 3 minutes Corn growers across Eastern Canada looking for help against early-season insect pests such as wireworms, black cutworms and armyworms will likely have a new option for the 2017 growing season. The timing may be ideal, considering the frustration over new regulations governing the use of neonicotinoid-based seed treatments, which will further tighten for the coming […] Read more
Another big hurdle for Canadian producers
With MRLs, the problems begin when a test used for regulating trade gets treated as a verdict on food safety
Reading Time: 6 minutes In the past 25 years, agriculture has seen a full gamut of new programs from environmental farm plans to neonicotinoid-use restrictions in Ontario. Some are relatively farm friendly, some less so. Like them or hate them, they’re all meant to be in the name of sustainability, traceability and food safety and security, which are under […] Read more
German chemical firm Lanxess to buy Chemtura
Reading Time: < 1 minute Reuters — Lanxess AG said on Sunday it would buy specialty chemical company Chemtura Corp. for about US$2.5 billion, to improve the German company’s additives business. Lanxess’s offer of US$33.50 for each Chemtura share represents a premium of about 19 per cent to the Philadelphia-based company’s close on Friday. The world’s largest synthetic rubber maker […] Read more
Sprayer speed a turbulent topic
As sprayers go faster, aerodynamics start to come into play. A PAMI project is evaluating if they affect spray deposition
Reading Time: 3 minutes On the surface, spraying seems straightforward. But a closer look at the multitude of factors that can influence how best to get product from the spray tank to the plant surface reveals something akin to a massive puzzle with a couple of pieces missing. One of the people trying to make that picture complete is […] Read more
A message from April Stewart, Country Guide's Associate Editor
