It’s all but impossible to eliminate sclerotinia and blackleg from the field, but it’s also a mistake to assume crop genetics alone will manage the problem. BASF technical service specialist Colleen Redlick said farmers need to broaden their approach during the BASF Knowledge Harvest in Brandon earlier this winter. Resistance breakdown, something the industry has
Tight crop rotations in the hot seat
Rotations were a major point as discussions turned to blackleg during this year’s BASF Knowledge Harvest
Temperature can give insight on water mould risk in soybeans
Soil temperature and disease pressure combine when targeting early-season water mould problems
Keep an eye on the soil temperature this spring to gain some insight into soybean water mould risks. Michael Wunsch, a professor at North Dakota State University, says having some idea of where temperatures are and what the near-term weather may hold is key to understanding the issue. He was speaking at the recent 2018
Feeding yield, not disease
Agronomist Peter Johnson explores what he calls the synergy between nitrogen and fungicide and what it means for yield
Agronomist Peter Johnson thinks fungicide and nitrogen are a match made in heaven and a late fungicide pass may help bolster yield in wheat. Johnson, of RealAgriculture, turned his talk to wheat yield during the recent BASF Knowledge Harvest event in Brandon. The cereal has become a gap filler in between crops like soybeans and
Pay attention to timing to boost immunity
That vaccination is wasted if applied at the wrong time, one expert says
Vaccination programs may look less like a road map and more like a maze to producers. There are questions on what illnesses they should target. Is a live or killed vaccine best? When should they be given? How long do they last? If it is a killed vaccine, how far apart should the doses be?
Manage herbicide resistance in the tank and out
Industry is pushing both chemical and non-chemical solutions to growing herbicide-resistance problems in Manitoba
It’s time to expand the tool box when it comes to managing weeds. That was the message to attendees at this year’s BASF Knowledge Harvest in Brandon Feb. 13. As of 2015, there were 65 unique weed-resistance cases in Canada, AAFC’s Bob Blackshaw said, a number that rose from near negligible in 1975 and sat
Circle H Farms named cream of the crop for environmental efforts by MBP
The Environmental Stewardship Award for Manitoba (TESA) went to the Harper family of Circle H Farms during the Manitoba Beef Producers President’s Banquet Feb. 8 in Brandon
Harper” is a well-known name among Manitoba beef farmers with an interest in rotational grazing. Brian and Sonja Harper, along with Thomas and Kristelle Harper, are the families behind Circle H Farms, a 500-acre, 80-head purebred cow-calf operation north of Brandon. Some may already be familiar with their fields, having attended a grazing workshop or
Refund scam flagged by Canadian beef breeders
Canadian cattle breeders should be on their guard after reports of an online scam. The Canadian Beef Breeds Council issued a warning after numerous producers reported fake emails looking to set up a sale, then requesting a refund before cheques clear. “It’s generally pretty high dollar values, so it gets the people excited that they’ve
Finding the source of soil salinity
How the problem came to be will determine how to deal with it in the field
Managing soil salinity might have a lot to do with how the problem started. Attendees to a Brandon soil fertility update Jan. 30-31, one of several to run through Manitoba in the last month, were told to consider how old the salinity problem is before making a plan of attack. “Salinity is not a soil
Different nutrient, different strategy
The nutrient in question, its source, and a host of other variables determine the right path
All nutrients are not created equal, and their management strategies should reflect that. That’s been a core message from soil and fertility specialists this winter during a round of soil fertility updates held in late January and early February. In recent years fertility and extension specialists have concentrated on the 4R message: right source at
Beef producers get trade rundown at AGM
From NAFTA to CETA and all points in between, trade was a key topic at the Manitoba Beef Producers annual meeting
There are at least as many questions as answers when it comes to beef and trade. Canadian beef is looking good in Asia with CPTPP, the replacement to the Trans-Pacific Partnership, proceeding. China remains a tempting fruit — but with more than a few thorns in the way — while questions remain over trade with