Reading Time: 3 minutes Soil tests The Olsen (bicarb) test is effective across a wide range of soils, including the high pH calcareous soils common in Manitoba and Saskatchewan, while the Bray test is effective only in neutral to lower pH non-calcareous soils, as are found in parts of Alberta and Saskatchewan. Kelowna and modified Kelowna tests are also […] Read more
Phosphorus 101: The basic BMPs
Here are the basic best management practices for phosphorus fertilizer
Oh FUD!
This new anti-farm marketing strategy makes even farmers feel like swearing. But here’s a better way to fight back
Reading Time: 6 minutes The food industry used to market food products on the basis of nutrition, quality and value. Companies spoke of the care farmers took to provide the healthiest, safest, best food in the world. Oh, how times have changed. Today, food branding often focuses on Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt (FUD). The nutritional label is overshadowed by […] Read more
Weed control with small critters
Insects, birds and worms are a free – and resistance-free – method of controlling weeds before they get a chance to germinate
Reading Time: 4 minutes The dominance of zero- or minimum-tillage practices on the Prairies means lots of weed seeds are left on the soil after harvest, but it turns out that there’s help available to stop them from germinating next spring, and you don’t have to buy it at your local chemical dealer. “Lowering the deposits into the weed […] Read more
Soil tests may not tell the whole story of phosphorus
Research shows “legacy” phosphorus might support crops long after you’ve stopped making applications
Reading Time: 5 minutes Do soil tests accurately reflect how much phosphorus is actually available to plants? A long-term study at the Semiarid Prairie Agricultural Research Centre in Swift Current, Sask., suggests they don’t. Research scientist Barbara Cade-Menun is leading a study on continuous wheat plots established in 1967. Until 1995, the plots received both nitrogen and phosphorus fertilizer; […] Read more
Farm like Scrooge
A long-term study suggests that penny-pinching can actually help the bottom line
Reading Time: 4 minutes Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada research scientist Bruce Gossen says the 18-year study was boring, but its results weren’t. Gossen and his colleagues took a long-term look at the effects of cropping diversity and inputs at Scott, Sask., from 1996 to 2013, but they didn’t just evaluate yields. They also looked at disease, insect and weed […] Read more
‘Super Keen’
Ag education is hot, and enrolment is booming from coast to coast
Reading Time: 8 minutes It’s inspiring for anyone in agriculture to talk to the principals and deans at ag-related academic institutions across the country. More than ever in history, young Canadians are pursuing careers in ag. In a nutshell, it’s because there are jobs in agriculture after school — good jobs that offer exciting and interesting career paths for […] Read more
More together
Taking a group and multi-generational approach to upgrading their skills is paying off on the Woods farm
Reading Time: 5 minutes More farmers agree that the old saying has it about right: Failing to plan is planning to fail. It’s too easy to get off-course if you haven’t set your intentions and goals to paper. Besides, how do you track your success if you don’t have goals? Having completed a succession plan that lays the groundwork […] Read more
New business
InfraReady’s success, crafted by entrepreneur Mark Pickard, reveals what it takes to grow an idea into a corporate success in today’s ag and food sector
Reading Time: 7 minutes InfraReady Products occupies a modest grey building in Saskatoon’s industrial area, across the street from Maple Leaf Foods. Inside is a business that produces over 250 food products for companies from around the world. On a late August day, a delegation of Mexican business people has stopped at InfraReady for lunch. The menu features food […] Read more
The power of knowing your soil
Much of Saskatchewan’s soil has been studied at least once over the decades. A WGRF-sponsored project puts all the results in one location available to everyone
Reading Time: 4 minutes Have you ever wondered why crops don’t seem to do well on a certain bit of land and it’s not always obvious why? Angela Bedard-Haughn is here to help you figure that out. The professor of soil science in the College of Agriculture and Bioresources at the University of Saskatchewan is leading the Saskatchewan Soil […] Read more
The building block of soil
Soil scientists are putting more focus on the value of organic matter for feeding important microbes and boosting moisture-managing capacity
Reading Time: 5 minutes Without it, soil is just dirt. There’s a new recognition of the importance of soil organic matter, and not only for improving crop yields. It’s also a tool in the effort to mitigate climate change. Blain Hjertaas, a holistic management farmer and grazier at Redvers, Sask., participates in the Soil Carbon Challenge, an international “competition” […] Read more
A message from April Stewart, Country Guide's Associate Editor
