An experimental laboratory set-up for testing the effects of bacterial endophytes.

Stress relief for crops

These bacterial endophytes may give farmers more control over their crops than anyone has ever dreamed could be possible

Reading Time: 4 minutes In the chase to increase agricultural productivity, science has turned to hybridization, transgenics, soil fertility, pest resistance and even CRISPR. Every year there’s been something new. So what more could there be left to explore? Well, what if we could effectively stop stress? How much would our yields go up if stress was no longer […] Read more

The ‘write’ way

The ‘write’ way

With big stakes at play on today’s farms, it’s more important than ever to make sure what you write sends a clear message

Reading Time: 4 minutes We’ve all had occasions when we’ve read something and we were left muttering, “I have no idea what that person was trying to say.” Not only does poor writing not accomplish the goal of communicating the intended information, it also wastes the time of both reader and writer. The number one goal of good writing […] Read more


Bob McIntosh has been using no-till planting on his farm in Ontario for 27 years.

Researchers defining phosphorus movement in Ontario soils

4R strategy plays a key role in reducing phosphorous runoff

Reading Time: 3 minutes Three short huts with solar panels on them sprout in Bob McIntosh’s wheat field near St. Marys, Ont. Inside the huts are monitoring equipment that goes right to the tiles that systemically move water from his farm. His farm is one of six across Ontario with the monitoring equipment that allows University of Waterloo researchers to study […] Read more

Figure 1. The system used to make a small batch of herbicide for spot spraying: a two-litre pop bottle, spray nozzle and 10 ml syringe.

Pest Patrol: Garlic mustard control

#PestPatrol with Mike Cowbrough, OMAFRA

Reading Time: 2 minutes Are there any herbicides that I could use to control garlic mustard on the farm? Garlic mustard is an early flowering weed that’s highly visible at the edge of farm woodlots and around buildings and grain bins in the spring. Although garlic mustard is rarely found competing in agricultural crops, it can invade forests and […] Read more