Poor emergence is a common story for crops caught by lack of rain this year, but seedling disease may be another culprit. Manitoba Agriculture field crop pathologist Holly Derksen says seedling disease may mimic a poor stand, particularly if infection came in on the seed or if the germinated seed is exposed before it breaks
On watch for sick seedlings?
Sparse emergence might be more than a germination issue, Manitoba Agriculture warns
PHOTOS: 2018 Manitoba Summer Fair
There was plenty to see and do at the Manitoba Summer Fair last week in Brandon, as seen here in these photos by Manitoba Co-operator reporter Alexis Stockford. The event ran from June 6-10.
Early weed identification key for early management
Do you know which weeds are lurking in your fields? When they’re young, provincial extension staff warn it might be hard to tell
Manitoba farmers are well acquainted with redroot pigweed, with its common reddish tinge, and most would not balk at putting a name to the seedling, even with only a few cotyledons breaking ground. If you’re in one of the unlucky Manitoba municipalities to be ‘blessed’ with waterhemp however, it might not be redroot pigweed at
Ideal flea beetle weather hits canola fields hard
Flea beetle damage has been enough to tip the scales for some producers considering reseeding their canola
Canola growers are reaching for the insecticide or, in some cases, extra seed after a spring that has been friendly for the flea beetles, but less than optimal for the crop. Justine Cornelsen, western Manitoba agronomy specialist with the Canola Council of Canada, says she has heard some farmers intending to reseed after their first
Running down the risks of seedling disease
Sparse emergence might be more than a germination issue, Manitoba Agriculture warns
Poor emergence is a common story for crops caught by lack of rain this year, but seedling disease may be another culprit. Manitoba Agriculture field crop pathologist Holly Derksen says seedling disease may mimic a poor stand, particularly if infection came in on the seed or if the germinated seed is exposed before it breaks
Unearth the pests lurking in your soil
No clipped-off plants yet? You may still have cutworms
You’ll need to get your hands a little dirty. Otherwise you may have no idea what’s about to chomp your crop — until it’s too late. John Gavloski, Manitoba Agriculture entomologist, says farmers should watch for cutworm and wireworm damage, something that, in both cases, will require digging in the soil around plants. The three
Rain relief brings good news for forage crops
The initial dour outlook for forage is looking brighter now that the dry spell has broken
Forage growers are seeing a glimmer of hope for the first time this season, with stands jumping from the recent rains. Some areas broke 10 millimetres of cumulated monthly rainfall for the first time in the last week of May. Brandon counted just over 55 millimetres through May and June as of June 3, while
Slow-growing pasture means feed questions for producers
Pastures are slow growing this spring and last year’s feed surplus is starting to dwindle
Gord Adams of Deloraine has a feed problem, and he’s not the only one. The beef producer is among many Manitoba farmers reaching the limit of their feed supplies while pastures remain unable to fully support herds given poor regrowth. “We’re pretty much out of hay here now and we’ve been kind of trying to
VIDEO: Weed ID day comes to Brandon
Manitoba Co-operator reporter Alexis Stockford recently met with provincial weed experts at one of two recent weed identification days to hear about some of the key points to watch for when identifying weeds as seedlings. The events were held in Carman and Brandon in the second-last week of May.
Drinking it in
Many farmers got their wish for rain in late May, although not everyone was so lucky
Last week was a cool drink of water for much of Manitoba, but patches of the province are still gasping for rain. Late May broke the dry spell that had been gripping almost all of agricultural Manitoba for April and May. “The rain that happened a week and a half ago didn’t really hit the